What Embers Remain
by A Stereotypical Gamer
Summary: Cinder is dispatched on a mission to kill Qrow before he can recover. In the midst of the attack, she does battle with Jaune Arc, and finds herself unable to kill him. Instead she is driven by a very different emotion, one that may not be her own... but rather the lingering soul of Pyrrha Nikos, possibly still alive within her. Cover art by Jack Wayne.
1. Light of the Soul

**What Embers Remain**

By A Stereotypical Gamer

* * *

 **Chapter One: Light of the Soul**

The forests of Anima were hard to navigate, but for Cinder, it was home. The journey to Mistral was treacherous only on the first foray; afterwards, it was just a long walk. The Grimm had their territory, the few remaining villages had their walls, and the bandits had their scattered strongholds. As she raced through the woods with Mercury and Emerald, each tree she passed reminded her of the past, when she'd trained in these forests when venturing outside of Haven.

Haven… where the silver-eyed girl had taken residence, waiting patiently for her uncle Qrow Branwen to recover from Tyrian's poison. That the old drunk had survived was further testament to Tyrian's failure, but at least he was removed as an obstacle. Had he been present, even the three of them may not have been enough to defeat the group. They had to strike while he was incapacitated.

Salem had made this a priority. Even though Cinder was still injured, Salem reasoned that with her subordinates she could defeat the four former Beacon students, so long as the silver-eyed Ruby Rose was isolated from Cinder and she was not exposed to the powers again. This would likely be their only chance to capture her while she was in Mistral, because Lionheart had flatly refused to assist them in their snatch and grab: that wasn't part of the pact he'd made, and he didn't want his hand to be exposed.

Watts had also flatly refused to help. Salem assured him that Cinder would be successful, and she felt confident she would be. Mercury and Emerald would divert attention and focus on Ruby Rose and the girl with the hammer and the boy in green, while Cinder would quickly dispose of the boy Jaune Arc and then rejoin her subordinates and overwhelm their foes.

With the CCT down, they had to make use of on the ground intelligence. Now that the fivesome had reached the city, they'd been keeping to their inn and to local restaurants and grocers while Qrow recovered. Cinder assumed an attack on a living space would be noticed by other guests and patrons, and they'd draw unwanted attention from law enforcement. But they couldn't afford to wait too long; they might miss their window.

However, opportunity did present itself, when Ruby Rose and two of her three allies did depart to gather their meals later in the day than usual. The streets were lighter with foot traffic, and Emerald could easily conceal Mercury's attacks, possibly even convince law enforcement to target the Beacon kids instead. And that left both Qrow and Jaune Arc alone and vulnerable in the inn. Cinder could simply assassinate both of them, thus saving her mistress a lot of trouble in the future by permanently closing the last eye.

Cinder gave the signal, and Mercury and Emerald moved to stalk their prey. Cinder had been a bit unsteady on her feet after months of injury and a slow, uneven recovery, but she remembered how to move silently and infiltrate. Based on the inn's registry, they'd been assigned a second floor room with a view of the kingdom. Not ideal, but if she moved quickly any witnesses would be confused at best.

She wanted to set Qrow Branwen alight, to unleash the fire raging within her. When she hated something, she always felt better about turning it to ash. The downside to her pyromancy was the feeling of intensity that tinted her emotions, exacerbated by the incomplete Aura transfer before. Cinder believed that once she'd absorbed all the powers of the Fall Maiden, she'd ease the pain within her, appeasing the roaring fires with a hearty meal.

Instead, the wounds Ruby Rose inflicted left her an entirely new pain, and the suffering caused by her defeat and subsequent humiliation created a far more potent wrath within her: a hatred that burned brightly and had no target to be vented upon in the presence of her mistress and seated at her table. Now, she had a target she could incinerate, and the pain would be lessened by sharing her fury with someone else.

She found the assigned room and crept slowly inward, still trying to find a groove in her pace and stance. She'd found some confidence in returning to Mistral and revisiting her stomping grounds after so much time in Salem's castle, but now that the time had come to experience real battle again, she felt clay in her feet.

She could not doubt. If she completed her task quickly, this attack would go off without a hitch. She would capture Ruby Rose, and prove her worth to Salem, succeeding where Tyrian had failed, and erasing her own failure in the eyes of her mistress. Even Watts might be silenced upon seeing Cinder triumphant.

Salem had expressed concerns about Cinder before, feeling Cinder lacked the necessary drive to play the part her mistress had in mind. Cinder had assuaged Salem's concerns by burning a facsimile of Ruby Rose over and over, scorching the castle floor again and again for hours, showing her commitment to revenge, and gaining the blessing of her mistress once again.

All that remained was to kill two helpless lambs.

Cinder slowly opened the door, careful not to make it creak, careful to keep her breathing short and swift. She saw the boy Jaune Arc sitting at the bedside, keeping vigil over the sleeping Qrow. All she had to do was flick her wrists, and she could burn them both away.

She liked the sight of Jaune. When she'd been sick, he'd sat at her bedside like that. Nora had shown her a picture she took on her Scroll, and she'd used it as a wallpaper for weeks-

What? That… what was that? Which one was Nora? And why would Jaune Arc attend to a Haven exchange student at his school for the tournament?

It was a vague, incomplete thought: a memory fractured after the silver explosion she'd been exposed to. It was not surprising this boy had been kind, even to someone he didn't know. That was what his upbringing had crafted him to be. He helped others without thought of reward, because helping others _was_ a reward.

His kindness was a weakness, and it was his undoing. His concern for her life had been what allowed Cinder to infiltrate the vault beneath Beacon, and stolen the Aura that she had volunteered to take into her-

No, that was wrong. She had stolen it, when opportunity presented itself, when the boy had been distracted by his concern for her, when his affection had cost them all, and the villains had completed their objective-

Villains?! What was this madness? She had to stop allowing these conflicting thoughts to trouble her, she had to act, while his back was turned. She was already overdue for completing the attack on the students.

He turned, looking at her with those piercing blue eyes. Cinder enjoyed nothing more than looking into them, ruffling his blonde locks to show she was proud of him…

No… that had never-

"You!" Jaune shouted, immediately reaching down to the bedside and hoisting up his family heirloom, Crocea Mors, which had quite an impressive crest now emblazoned upon it. Wait, how had she known it was an heirloom? How had she known his weapon _had_ a name?

She tried to summon the fires raging within her, but she could not lift her hand. How could she harm him? How could she ever raise a hand to him, knowing she'd see pain in those eyes?

Jaune moved to attack, unsheathing his blade with such speed and precision. He'd clearly practiced; the last time he'd tried to unsheathe and attack in succession he'd tripped over himself and stumbled right past her. She wondered if he'd listened to the recording she'd left for him-

No, that was wrong! All of this was wrong! He was nothing but a small, insignificant impediment! She could destroy him with ease!

She'd stood in the light of his Aura, embracing him for the first time. When she saw the cut on his cheek heal, she'd felt the pulse of his soul, echoing through her fingertips. In stepping into the light of his soul, she'd felt warmth. And in that moment, there had been no more pain. She was drawn to the light, as though drawn into his magnetic field, and found her energy complemented his. When they stood together in the Emerald Forest, and she spoke the words to him-

 **THAT NEVER HAPPENED!** She had never _been_ to the Emerald Forest, why was she remembering holding Jaune in her arms, and feeling light pour into her?!

She barely raised her hand, summoning glass shards embedded in her dress to form a crude barrier, her body moving on instinct to deflect his attack. It was fortunate she had not forgotten _that_ , if nothing else. Her muscle memory saved her from defeat at the hands of another novice.

Cinder tried to constitute a second weapon from the glass, to forge a blade or a bow and disarm him. Yet she could not compel the Dust to move in her fingertips. She could not do anything that would do him harm. She hated even to spar with him, because sometimes, no matter how much punishment he took and how she loved to see him improve, she knew she could accidentally overdo it and he might be hurt-

Cinder had gone mad! There was no other explanation. Salem had warned her that drawing upon the Aura of the Fall Maiden would affect her mind, that she'd be struck by contradictory emotions, experiencing the strongest memories as vividly as though they were her own. There had been times, during her recovery, Cinder had dreams she had not understood, of formless, invisible pain… but she buried it beneath the fire, smothering it under licks of flame, knowing her hate would be stronger.

Yet now… yet now…

How could she hate him? How could anyone? How could Weiss not see what she saw so clearly?

Weiss? The heiress? What did she have to do with- Cinder held the thought as she raised her shield again, stepping back into the hall from the force of his attack. He may not have had much technique, but this boy was _strong._

That was to be expected, he was a farmer. He was the only boy of eight children, and carried the burden when his sisters could not- HOW DID SHE KNOW THAT?! _**WHY**_ DID SHE KNOW THAT?!

Jaune recognized he'd failed to break her barrier, and re-sheathed his sword, only to reveal some new transformation in his weapon, giving Crocea Mors _two_ blades, the shield transforming to give him a greatsword. With a swing, he shattered Cinder's glass barrier and drove her to the hallway floor.

He leveled the blade to her throat. She'd been surprised by some of his attacks before, and were he a more experienced fighter she might've been defeated at certain points… but he'd never outright _bested_ her. She couldn't have been more proud of him, for attaining this height.

Why was she proud of her enemy? No, less than her enemy, her impediment?! What was wrong with her?! Was she really so weak?!

Jaune held the blade to her neck. He could easily kill her. "What you did… what you did to Pyrrha, and Ozpin, and the Fall Maiden… you deserve this."

He wasn't exactly wrong. She had earned death. She'd rushed to it, really… because it had always been her destiny to fight the darkness, and like all huntresses before her, die at its hand.

No, she was meant for power and glory! She was meant to surpass Salem and take her place as the most powerful woman in the world! Not some ignominious death at the hands of an amateur! This wasn't how things were meant to happen; this wasn't how things were supposed to end!

"Do you have anything you want to say first?" Jaune asked her, before looking to the side, no longer meeting her eye.

He wasn't able to do it. He never looked her in the eye when he had to disappoint her. She was grateful for it; his pain always became her pain.

She could kill him, right now. Even prone, she could set him ablaze and be done. Mercury and Emerald must've found their targets by now, and the more important battle would require her attention.

But she could not harm him. Just as he would not harm her. No matter how he postured, he wouldn't harm a helpless, _defeated_ opponent. He did not hate. He did not embrace the darkness when it seeped into his soul; he burned it away with his light.

When she'd prepared to sacrifice herself, Jaune had tried to dissuade her, or even accompany her to the fight, even though he'd be outmatched. And she knew he would die… she didn't care that she would die, so long as he didn't.

She needed a way to silence him. And she knew she may have no other chance to let him know the truth.

So she kissed him. Even with the weight of the world coming down on her shoulders, even with her friends in danger and her path clear, she'd hesitated, because she wanted nothing more but to hold her kiss and never release it, to be there, in his arms, in his embrace, in the light of his soul, forever.

She longed to feel it again. So she would.

Cinder leaned up and kissed him.

Jaune may not have been intending to harm her, even prone and defeated, but he had kept his guard up. When she leaned up to him, he attempted to steady his weapon, rather than pull his head back. Of all the things he'd expected her to do… that certainly wasn't among them.

He was distracted, confused… but she felt, for a brief moment, him loosening his grip, as he had in the Beacon courtyard. She remembered the taste of his lips… how intense the feeling, how it had eased the fire burning within her…

Cinder frantically pulled back from the boy and rolled away from him. He was looking on, dumbfounded, his sword pointed uselessly at the floor. Cinder dashed down the hallway, burning a path straight through the wall, retreating from him.

Jaune, stupefied though he was, quickly recovered and reached frantically for his Scroll to warn the others. He would not let that woman take another of his friends, and no matter her… very strange actions, that priority was still foremost in his mind.

Cinder sent a text through her Scroll ordering Mercury and Emerald to disengage. She dashed outside the kingdom borders, finding herself overlooking Mistral from a forested hilltop. She tried to process the events of the night, taking herself through her aborted attack step by step.

Before, though she'd been a bit unsure, a bit lacking in confidence, but her mind had been rational. Her doubts were born of logic, of pragmatism concerning her injuries. Yet, when she saw that boy, Jaune Arc, her rational mind vanished completely.

Even now, even trying to banish the unwelcome thoughts, she was consumed by the memories of him. She sparred with Jaune several times each week, felt pride in seeing him improve, enjoyed the alone time they spent together… relished each compliment he'd paid her…

 **NONE OF THAT EVER HAPPENED.**

Was Salem right? Had Cinder's mind somehow been corrupted during the second Aura transfer? Was she, for some reason, experiencing the thoughts of Pyrrha Nikos, who Ozpin had attempted to give the powers of the Fall Maiden?

Why?! Why would anyone love that idiot farm boy?

Because he was so genuine, so kind, so warm, in everything he did-

Madness! Weakness! Childish infatuation!

Yet, when she'd recalled that moment in the Emerald Forest, when the light of his soul had washed her pain away-

It was an illusion. A vagueness in her perception, an unexpected benefit from her muddled, chaotic thoughts.

And when she'd kissed him, and he'd lifted the weight of the world from her…

Pyrrha Nikos was dead! Her thoughts were nothing more than the wishes of every other hapless citizen of Remnant burnt away in the flames of history! She was nothing now, and what she'd wished, what she'd thought, what she'd felt: that was nothing now too.

Yet, for a brief moment, she'd felt it… a fire that burned like hunger, just as she'd felt before when the soul within her was incomplete, and then the fire washed away, replaced by a stronger feeling that illuminated her, ensnaring her in warmth, in feeling his light and being embraced in it…

It was a weakness. What else could it be? It hadn't saved Pyrrha Nikos her life.

And yet, all she thought were those moments, when her pain disappeared, when her fear and doubts disappeared in the face of such burning light.

She had to be free of this, she had to move past this failure and disguise this weakness before her mistress detected it. She had to kill that boy, to silence the voice whispering deep in her soul.

But she could not kill him. Because she loved him.

She did _not_ love him! Love was nothing but an illusion! Love was weak hearts clinging together for solace in face of the harsh reality of the world!

Yet Jaune, with nothing but his hope and optimism, had helped her lift the weight of the world…

Cinder clenched either side of her head and tried to scream, but produced only a muffled, wheezing whine, and fell to her knees in the grass.

For two brief moments, the pain had been gone. She had felt something she'd never felt, and wanted to dip her cup in the well of his light and never stop.

It was wrong. It was fruitless. It was not the life she could have.

Yet, when she'd kissed him, when she'd felt the pulse of his soul...

Cinder slammed her fist into the dirt and set the grassy patches aflame, turning it to ash.

But the hatred and frustration did not leave her. Burning the world no longer eased her pain.

Now that she had experienced that light in his soul, she had to be free of the darkness…

She had to feel it again.


	2. Enticed By Hope

**Chapter Two: Enticed by Hope**

Emerald and Mercury regrouped with Cinder on the hilltop, the latter looking a bit worse for the wear, with noticeable cuts in his pants. It seemed they'd underestimated the Beacon students again, as they'd managed to get through his Aura _and_ targeted him where he was vulnerable. Cinder found herself impressed against her will, that her hated enemy had learned from their last encounter.

"What happened?" Mercury asked, tempering his clear impatience and anger by keeping his tone as flat as possible.

Cinder wasn't sure what to tell them. The truth was certainly out of the question: it would be exposing a weakness to her subordinates at the worst possible time, when they already had ample reason to doubt her. Whatever loyalty they may have had would be outweighed by their self-interest, and they'd run back to Salem's castle rather than remain with her if Cinder continued to suffer defeats.

But how could she explain… _this_ to them? How could anyone understand that the feelings of a dead girl had driven her to embrace a boy she'd intended to kill only minutes before? Moreover, how could anyone understand she'd had an opportunity to remove a major obstacle to her queen's plans… and _not_ taken it? Even going over it in her private thoughts it seemed like madness.

Still, Cinder attempted to provide a more measured explanation, but her words were lower and raspier than ever, and even Emerald had trouble making them out… if Cinder articulated words at all. She feigned frustration, and typed into her Scroll that she'd been sent to the wrong hotel, and had wasted several minutes looking for the quarry.

Emerald looked skeptical, while Mercury, simple and direct as he was, only seemed surprised anyone who'd provided Cinder bad intelligence was still breathing. Cinder encouraged the thought, feigning more outrage in subsequent texts to the two, vowing to kill their incompetent contacts or to get revenge on Doctor Watts if he'd decided to intervene somehow… both plausible lies.

Cinder ordered the two to monitor the girl and not lose sight of the opportunity to be rid of her, and remain undetected. Now that they'd lost the element of surprise, the four students would almost certainly regroup and hunker down until Qrow Branwen was healthy again. If they succeeded in that, Cinder would have to report a failure to Salem, and lose her chance to move two threats to both the queen and herself off the board.

Once they were gone, Cinder tried to summon the troublesome thoughts, so she could combat the impurity with her sane, rational mind. And regrettably, those thoughts were… vivid.

She remembered the day she'd met Jaune, when he was clumsily trying to impress Weiss in the locker rooms before initiation. She'd liked him immediately, because unlike Weiss, he hadn't immediately tried to get on her good side and exploit her talents for his own scheme; if anything, he'd seen past her and his infatuation had been elsewhere. What should've been a tremendous insult to her pride and sense of self-worth had transformed into a fond, endearing memory, because it was the first time anyone had treated 'the invincible girl' like an ordinary person, rather than an asset to be courted.

If nothing else, this provided Cinder useful insight… or would have, if the heiress to the SDC was not still in Atlas at a time they were about to close up their borders, rendering her out of reach. Instead it was just a memory of a foolish teenage crush, and not even one that was reciprocated. It turned Cinder's stomach to think of such foolishness.

Or, more accurately, that was what she _wanted_ to feel. She'd have been more comfortable if such a sight left her feeling discomfort or annoyance. Instead, when she reflected on it, it felt like a treasured memory. When she thought of Jaune, Cinder felt… _warm_. When she thought of their first meeting, she felt a deep dullness in her chest, pulling her down with a weighty sensation she could not entirely describe.

From a very early point, she had dismissed the possibility of love. She did not need it, she did not want it, and would not allow its weakness to taint her or hold her back from accomplishing her goal. When she saw the children at Beacon going through the awkward motions of adolescent crush, Cinder had scoffed, grateful she was not indulging in such foolishness.

Now, she felt herself… _longing_ for that feeling, because painful as it was for Jaune not to return her love for him, that she loved him at all…

Cinder tried to tell herself it was wrong, this lingering emotion. Whatever foolish love Pyrrha Nikos had for Jaune Arc must've been a weakness. If it had given her strength, if it had been something worth pursuing, she wouldn't have died at Cinder's hand.

Yet, when Cinder had been in Jaune's presence, the ache in her wounds had vanished. When she remembered embracing him, she felt no more pain. When she kissed him, she'd felt this weight in her soul lift and she'd felt unburdened.

Salem had encouraged her to use the pain of her wounds as motivation, to let Cinder's hunger for revenge drive her, let her ambition burn like a fire raging within her so she would be motivated to excel and improve. Now, the thought of revenge on Ruby Rose seemed like a pointless distraction. Not when she could take the pain away in Jaune's embrace.

Half of her was disgusted by this compromising weakness, but though she tried to convince itself it was her rational mind trying to bring her back to sanity, Cinder knew that half was losing out to the one that longed to hold him again. Invasive, alien, and terrifying as those feelings were, they overpowered Cinder, and Cinder couldn't help but respect what could overpower her.

And she wanted to see him, to hold him, to kiss him…

There had to be something about the noodly farm boy that had wooed the Mistral regional champion; something that now intoxicated Cinder and called her to him. Perhaps it was the taste of his Aura, perhaps he wasn't so honest after all, merely very blessed… in less obvious ways.

Cinder hoped it was something she could snuff out, so she'd be free of this weakness. Once she knew how to strike him, she'd burn him away and forget this pointless, hampering affection.

Cinder took a moment to sort through the vague recollections, trying to find a coherent picture… when they'd moved into the dorm with Ren and Nora, Jaune had eagerly handed out his number to his teammates, eager to add them as his friends. She recalled feeling a slight twinge of jealousy upon seeing Ruby Rose already in his list of contacts…

But there was the number. There was the way to reach him.

But what to say? Why would he be drawn out, knowing Cinder Fall was beckoning to him?

Normally, she could entice men without effort, but Cinder suspected it might be a bit harder with the boy after she killed Pyrrha Nikos, whatever she'd meant to him. A kiss from her would make a normal man beg at her heel. But Jaune Arc was too good a person to be seduced… at least by Pyrrha's murderer.

Still, Cinder now had overpowering memories of that girl's life. She knew secrets, hopefully secrets Jaune Arc had not shared with his teammates.

And if she could not entice him with her own wiles, Cinder would draw him in a different way… by using his own naïve, earnest hopes to pave the way to his demise.

* * *

Jaune received word from the others that they'd encountered Emerald and Mercury, Cinder's minions, and they'd had to fight them off. Ren had taken a bad hit from Mercury and he and Nora were finding their way to cover and a place for him to rest. Ruby was already on her way back to the inn to catch up with Jaune and Qrow.

Jaune was relieved his friends were alright, and eager to compare notes. Though he might leave out the part where Cinder had kissed him and he'd been distracted enough to let her escape.

He'd finally taken his eyes off his Scroll to check on Qrow, when he got a new text, this one from an unknown number…

 **I'm still alive within her, Jaune.**

It wasn't possible. It was a deception, some kind of trick… why was that madwoman still toying with him after her scheme had already fallen apart? Jaune intended to ignore it, when:

 **Remember what I told you in the Emerald Forest?**

 **You brought me back, Jaune. You're the only one who can.**

Pyrrha unlocked his Aura in the Emerald Forest, binding their souls for the briefest moment. Jaune had not realized then the connection they'd forged, and it had cost him when he'd been so oblivious to all the things Pyrrha had tried to tell him.

It couldn't be real. No matter how much he wanted to believe it, Jaune knew there was no way back from death.

A fourth text followed, with a set of coordinates. His Scroll helpfully pointed out a hilltop just outside of Mistral.

He should wait for Ruby and tell her all of this. Whatever game Cinder was playing, maybe they could turn it against her.

But then:

 **Please. I don't have long.**

Jaune dug at his blonde locks in frustration. It was a lie, it had to be. Cinder was trying to trap him, maybe even use him as leverage against his friends. She was just using Pyrrha's memory to taunt him, dishonoring Pyrrha even further than she had already.

But how could Jaune bring himself to abandon her? How could he ever allow himself to fail her again?

He took up Crocea Mors and went to see if there was more waiting on the hill than a ghostly echo.

* * *

Cinder waited on the hilltop, feeling cold wisps of wind sting her exposed skin. It hurt the scars above her nose, feeling that cold rush past. It seemed foreboding, feeling this cold, when she could easily start a fire and feel warm again, but she wanted to know for certain that the sensation she'd felt in Jaune Arc's presence hadn't been a fluke. She wanted to know that the warmth he'd generated within her was something that could be repeated, that he could take the pain away.

Once she felt the light of his soul again, once she knew how to move past the feeling, then she'd be done with him. And while his friends searched for him, she'd strike at Qrow while he was vulnerable, and take her time in destroying Ruby Rose.

But the thought did not excite her. Where before the thought of revenge had been all-consuming, now it left her with a bitter aftertaste. Jaune was what filled her thoughts now, and the dull weight in her chest when she thought of him brought on an entirely different pain, a longing that could not be fulfilled while he was absent.

Love… this felt more like obsession. _That_ Cinder understood, and tried to focus on. She tried to find comfortable, recognizable thoughts, because the alternative was to be consumed by this irrational need for Jaune. Obsession with a target was easier for her to comprehend than this strange sensation of 'love.'

She heard his footsteps draw near. He was fully armed and armored, but he hadn't drawn his sword. Whatever advantage he'd gained on Cinder before, he wasn't such a fool as to think he could defeat her in single combat on a stage of her choosing.

Watching him walk over, Cinder felt the weight in her chest increase. He was confused and misled by her deception, and that pain in his thoughts tore at her own emotions. Why hadn't she simply been honest and asked him to speak with her?

Because she was not honest. The ghost taking up residence in her might've been, but soon enough that would be a vague memory of a very unusual day.

"I'm here," Jaune announced.

Cinder stepped towards him, taking in the sight. When he filled her vision, she didn't feel the pain of her wounds.

"Prove you are who you say you are," Jaune instructed, trying to stay steady and serious.

Such ardor didn't fit him. Jaune was much too nice to be demanding. Still, Cinder tried to comply, trying to prey upon his sympathy by reminding him of close, intimate memories… when Pyrrha had leaned on his shoulder in the courtyard, when she'd kissed him before rushing headlong into battle… moments they shared with no other witnesses to corroborate. These secrets were an embarrassment of riches.

Or would've been, if Cinder could speak. A few raspy whispers escaped her lips, but no words formed. All she thought of was Jaune standing before her. How could she deceive him? She loved him.

 _Pyrrha Nikos_ loved him.

Something about him had drawn her. Something powerful. Something magnetic.

Cinder looked away and tapped on her Scroll: "I lied."

Jaune felt his Scroll buzz, but ignored it. No doubt he was expecting his friends to try and reach him. "You called me out here, didn't you? What do you want?"

When she no longer met his gaze, Cinder felt the pain in her eye and arm, and the cold winds striking her scars. But how could she look at him? How could she bear to see him angry and hurt, with how she'd deceived him?

There was no denying it now: her feelings were not something she could suppress or control or even ignore. Pyrrha Nikos was burning within her, contorting Cinder's emotions with the sheer, unbridled _power_ of that… love.

Love was not powerful, it was brittle and weak and fleeting… and yet Cinder was rendered powerless before it.

Since Jaune would not look at his own Scroll, Cinder held up hers', showing him the text she'd sent.

"You lied," Jaune scoffed. "Yeah, I figured. Well, what are you waiting for? I walked into your trap."

He was so brave. He'd always been determined to prove himself, but only very rarely was his bravado anything more than a show to encourage or impress. Now, it seemed, loss had steeled him, and made him truly daring, as he stood before someone much stronger than himself without fear.

Cinder looked at him again, knowing it'd be easier to endure without the pain, with his presence lifting her spirits. "I'm… sorry…" she managed.

Sorry for deceiving him.

Sorry for lying.

Sorry… for… killing…

Cinder flung herself to the ground, driving her fists into the dirt. She was _not_ sorry she had killed Pyrrha Nikos, because the Fall Maiden's power had never been hers', and if she'd succeeded in taking a portion of Amber's soul, then Cinder would never have felt complete.

How fleeting that feeling was. Now she felt incomplete without Jaune.

She'd never needed anyone. Why did she need this boy?

Why did she _want_ to?

Jaune knelt down, and at first seemed to move to help her, instinctively reaching to offer support to someone in need, only to draw back. He seemed unsure how to proceed, because even knowing how monstrous Cinder was, he pitied anyone their pain and suffering.

How could she _not_ love him? How could she keep denying what was plainly true?

Cinder looked up at him, reaching up with her hand to his chin. Jaune briefly flinched as though to draw back, but did not retreat from her.

"Why are you doing this?" Jaune asked her.

"I… don't know," Cinder admitted. The more she spoke to him, the easier the words came to her lips, as though the pain of speaking lessened with her every statement. Speaking to Emerald had been a painful, labored process. Speaking to Jaune was _healing_ her. "I don't know what's happened to me."

She averted his gaze, even though it meant the pain would return. "She loved you so much. And something… some part of her is still here within me."

She hated confessing weakness to anyone, and had fought it at every moment when Salem interrogated her. Yet speaking to Jaune was uplifting, freeing her from the burden weighing in her chest.

"So she is still in there?" Jaune asked, his eyes brightening.

The sight of his hope… when Cinder saw that, she would pounce and destroy this boy while he was vulnerable.

The sight of his eyes… when Cinder finally turned to look upon them, all thoughts of harming him disappeared.

She'd never been in love. But she thought this might be it.

"I don't know," Cinder answered, speaking honestly, no matter how strange a sensation it was. "But I can hear her whispering to me, drawing me to you."

She tried to deny it. She tried to raise her hand and kill him while she had him distracted.

That wasn't what she wanted to do. There was only one thing she _wanted_ to do.

"Jaune…"

Cinder leaned up and kissed him once again, embracing him tightly, hungry for his touch and his warmth.

There was nothing but that moment. No pain, no ambition, no hate. Just her and Jaune and their kiss.

This was what she wanted, more even than revenge, more even than power. This.

* * *

In the distance, watching through the scope of her sniper rifle, Ruby's mouth fell agape as she dropped Crescent Rose to the ground.


	3. As You Are

**Chapter Three: As You Are**

Cinder wanted to remain in this embrace, but the longer she held onto it, the more aware she became of time moving. Jaune Arc was simply staying still: even with a beautiful woman pressed against him he took no action. What had begun as a blissful cessation was now becoming increasingly awkward and strained.

Had he rejected her? He hadn't rejected her when she kissed him at the base of the tower…

There were those conflicting memories again, contorting her thoughts. When away from him, Cinder could separate her own thoughts and memories from those of Pyrrha Nikos. When in his presence, it ran together in a chaotic stream. The past and the present kept intertwining.

When in the past, recalling Pyrrha's love for Jaune, the pain of her wounds dulled and the sheer passion of her feelings was the only thought that affected her. When in the present, Cinder was left unable to comprehend her behavior or her actions, and the pain sharpened. Hence she tried to subsume herself in the kiss and be lost in the moment, to forget doubt and pain.

Jaune pulled away from her, averting his gaze. He looked so distant, disappointed in himself. Why wouldn't he be? For a moment, he'd forgotten he was kissing the person who murdered the woman he loved. He must've been disgusted with himself for allowing the feeling, even for a moment.

There were no words he could offer, but the truth was unmistakable: the spark that drove Cinder to this act was not within Jaune Arc. He'd indulged her for a moment, and now he regretted taking the time to do so.

How could he accept her? How could he forgive her?

Cinder looked upon him for a moment. Seeing his face contort like that brought her down again, as the pain of her wounds stung her and the dull weight in her chest pulled her down like a millstone.

Cinder wanted to reassure him, to bring light and hope back to his eyes, but he'd withdrawn from her. And if he hated himself, there was no chance he'd be able to love her.

She ambled to her feet and dashed back into the forest, running as far as her feet would carry her. Jaune made no effort to stop her and did not call to her retreating back.

Somehow that made the pain worse.

" _ **Good."**_

Cinder stopped. She knew that voice… but, _how…?_

She felt an entirely new pain, burning and searing like fire, running up through her uninjured right arm. Why? Why was she feeling pain there?

She remembered briefly, using a parasitic Grimm in her right hand to steal half of Amber's power… how it scratched and clawed under her skin. How the fire burned her as it poured in to her blood.

This felt even worse than that. The burn was only one sensation. Worse than scratching, she felt pulling and tearing, as darkness seeped from within her, pooling in her palm.

The darkness took form, rising up in her hand in a familiar shape.

" _ **Cinder."**_

 _Salem_ , she mouthed.

" _ **Good you got away from the boy. It gives us a chance to talk…"**_

* * *

Jaune had been left thunderstruck twice in a row by Cinder's actions, but the latter of the two had lasted long enough for him to regain his bearings and at least some of his composure. When he'd pulled out of her kiss to be alone with his thoughts, he'd briefly considered it an achievement to escape from Cinder and her attempt to seduce or deceive him.

But once he did, she had hesitated. She hadn't lashed out or cursed him, she'd just sat and stared before she ran away, leaving him completely unharmed… well, _physically_ unharmed, at least. Emotionally, he wasn't sure how to describe. Or even where to begin.

He heard footsteps drawing near, moving rapidly. He briefly wondered if Cinder had tired of her game or taken his rejection poorly and sent her minions to avenge her loss of face. But as he readied Crocea Mors for battle, he heard the footsteps slow, but not stop in time to prevent the clumsy speedster from joining him.

Ruby tumbled out of the brush onto the hilltop not far from him. She locked gaze with him for a moment, before suddenly averting her eyes, awkwardly raising a hand to stifle a cough. Jaune wasn't sure how she thought she could avoid his attention now, but it looked like she was trying to.

"Ruby?" Jaune asked, trying to sound patient with his friend's antics.

Ruby continued to avoid looking at him. "When you disappeared from the inn, we were worried- we thought they'd taken you."

She knew. She'd seen… _something_ , at least. Ruby had moments of awkward shyness, but only when meeting someone new or uncertain about her own thoughts. Around Jaune, she rarely held back her opinion, and hadn't had any trouble looking him in the eye since their last pep talk.

He could only imagine what she was thinking. Jaune stepped over to her, sheathing his sword. He wanted to clear up misconceptions, quickly, and never let doubt divide him from his friends ever again.

"She contacted me after she attacked us at the inn," Jaune explained, holding up his Scroll to show Ruby the texts… at least hopefully, if she'd ever turn her head. "She pretended that Pyrrha was still alive within her somehow and… I'm sorry if I worried you or the others, but I _had_ to know. I didn't want to lose whatever chance I had here."

Ruby continued to determinedly look away. His bumbling word choice hadn't helped; if anything it seemed to sour her mood further. Did she think he and Cinder…?

"I don't know what she's doing," Jaune explained. He wouldn't lie to Ruby, even if that would put her at ease. "I don't know if it's really Pyrrha in there trying to send a message, or Cinder's just trying to trap me. But she was my partner, and if she is still there –in any sense- I'll do whatever I can to help her."

"Cinder murdered her," Ruby reminded him, still not meeting Jaune's eye. The memory might well hurt her worse than it hurt him; she'd seen it firsthand. Jaune doubted she'd ever be able to forget it, and recalled at least one instance where she'd waken from a nightmare, recalling the moment.

It was foolish to think that he'd feel anything for that horrible woman… and while Jaune wasn't always able to infer what girls were thinking, it seemed Ruby had reason to doubt, to wonder if he'd somehow been taken in by Cinder's wiles.

"I know," Jaune agreed, "I'll never forget that. It hurts me, listening to her talk about Pyrrha… but there are things Cinder knows now she couldn't have known before, about Pyrrha and me. Things that make me think there's more to this."

"Who knows how long she had spies at Beacon?" Ruby countered. "She was always manipulating us; what makes this any different?"

He didn't have a good answer for that. Was he seeing something that wasn't there because he _wanted_ it to be true? Was he just deluding himself and chasing ghosts?

"I'll let the others know you're okay," Ruby assured him, her attention now firmly at the ground and not off into the distance. "You should come back to the inn, or Nora might come looking for you instead."

Such a subtle warning: if Nora or Ren saw Cinder embracing Jaune, they'd try to kill her without question. And they'd be right to, taking out a dangerous enemy and taking advantage of her distraction.

Before she could disappear in a flash of rose petals, however… "Ruby," Jaune called to her back, "will you say what you want to say to me?"

Ruby was quiet for far too long. She may have softened her words from time to time, but she did not hesitate to share her opinion. Her silence was far more damning.

"Just be careful, Jaune," Ruby requested, before disappearing in a flash.

She really thought he'd snuck off for… a liaison. She was disappointed in him, and afraid for him, and Jaune wasn't sure anything he'd told her had offered reassurance. Even the best friend he had left thought he was delusional for pursuing this.

He wished he could feel she was wrong.

* * *

The darkness dribbled off Cinder's palm to the dirt and grass below, whisking itself back up into a thinner, wispier state: a crude representation of her mistress, composed of naught but inky black and empty air. Black lines filled in the details of her face, and two spinning pools of black formed her eyes, holding Cinder's attention. Even this facsimile commanded her respect, for it was a reminder Salem's eye was everywhere, and ever watchful.

"Have you enjoyed your delusion?" Salem asked her disciple.

"It… wasn't…" Cinder wheezed, noting how painful it was to speak. In Jaune's presence she had felt resuscitated, and the pain that had staid her tongue was abated. Prostrate before her mistress again reminded Cinder that her words _hurt_. She hoped that was simply the pain of her wounds, and not some tax Salem extolled from her.

"Please do not attempt to deceive me," Salem requested, "Not now. If you're going to lie to me, I'd prefer you were healthy and whole. You wouldn't succeed then either… but at least you'd put on a show."

When Salem toyed with her, it always preceded a particularly harsh lesson. Cinder expected her mistress to reach with her outstretched hand, half a continent away, and torture her. She tried to hide that fear, as she'd been taught to.

"Let's focus on the matter at hand," Salem continued. "The boy. Did you enjoy the moment when you kissed him?"

How did she- of course she knew. She saw everything. She _knew_ everything. Cinder might've been able to hide this from her subordinates, maybe even her peers in Salem's inner circle. But not Salem herself. The darkness always knew.

"Did it remind you of what you might've been, had your life taken a different turn?" Salem asked. She sounded much less harsh than Cinder anticipated. She sounded… mournful.

"I understand, child, I truly do," Salem assured her. "That once, you might've wished for a different fate: pictured yourself with a lover, a family, a hearth and home. It's natural to want such things. It's understandable to wish for it. The desire is your very nature.

"But you know -you've known longer than most- that it cannot be," Salem reminded her. "When you entered my service, you cast it all away. You shed the attachments of this world, this remnant, in pursuit of something greater. Because you rejected the simple and the mundane for a great, burning destiny. You did not start to hunger for glory the day you entered my service, or the day you stole from the Fall Maiden. That ambition burned within you long before you sealed your pact with me."

"It… isn't me…" Cinder tried to explain. "The girl… Pyrrha Nikos…"

"So you have assured yourself," Salem nodded. "But you are _not_ Pyrrha Nikos. Just as you are not the previous Fall Maiden. You stole from them, so they burn in your memory. When you take a life, you may be able to forget it with time. When you take a _soul_ , you cannot forget it until the fire dies out."

"Fire?" Cinder repeated.

"The Aura you drew from the Fall Maiden seeped inside you, but not as rapidly as you believed," Salem explained. "Do you remember when you killed Pyrrha Nikos? Do you remember _how_ you did it?"

Of course. Cinder would not forget Pyrrha's death, for that moment of defiance.

 _Do you believe in destiny?_

She drove her arrow into the girl's heart, so that her last words would be pained gasps.

Cinder narrowed her eye and nodded.

"When you killed her, her Aura wisped away, onto the battlefield," Salem continued.

Cinder reached her hand down, taking hold of Pyrrha's tiara. She wanted a souvenir.

And then burnt her from the inside out, using her chest wound as a starting point.

"And then, immediately after you killed her, and her Aura still lingered, you were wounded," Salem went on. "While there were still cracks in your shell, you suffered greater damage, and thus instinctively used your soul's power to heal… and drew in what lingered before it could disappear."

"Then… why… now?" Cinder just managed to ask.

"There was no reason for the Aura within to emerge before," Salem dismissively replied. "It may well have simply faded in time, disappeared into memory with the last Fall Maiden. But you found a source of Aura that had linked to it, and restored fire to the hearth."

Cinder was starting to understand. She recalled that moment in the Emerald Forest again, when she –when _Pyrrha_ \- had embraced Jaune and unlocked his Aura, guiding him with her own, bonding them together. It was such a good memory, and it eased the pain in her wounds, thinking of how she'd help Jaune heal himself.

"Enough," Salem interrupted her. Had this inky façade of her mistress somehow seen…? "We must move past this weakness. You are too valuable to my plans, Cinder. I will not lose you to something so trivial."

Cinder did not reply. She thought of the cold air around her, thought of the pain in her eye and arm…

"I am willing to forgive doubt, so long as it does not stay your hand," Salem told her disciple, "but I will not forgive disobedience. Return to me and abandon this mission. I will help purge you of this infection."

It was a logical course of action to take. Salem was being merciful, and she should not spurn her good fortunes. Cinder should return to the castle, continue her recuperation, and forget this whole unusual series of events.

But if she left, she'd lose this feeling… this thing that alleviated her pain and held her, warmed her in ways she had not felt before…

"I know you are tempted," Salem observed, seemingly reading her thoughts once more. "But you know better. You know you cannot have that life. What you've taken from them will always put you apart. They will never again welcome you as you are, and _he_ will not love a ghost forever."

She turned her head, and for the briefest moment did not look at Cinder. "No one ever does."

Salem turned her attention to her subordinate once again. "You have my decree. I'll expect your return."

The darkness split apart, falling to the ground and seeping into it, disappearing into the dirt. Salem's essence passed through the Heart of Remnant, and the parasitic Grimm used as her vessel ceased to be.

There was no reason to remain. This love –this weak, brittle thing- was an affectation and not Cinder's own invention. Even if it had been, that'd be all the more reason to return to Salem and forget such foolishness. Love was something to be controlled and manipulated, and if she was not pulling the strings of such powerful emotion, she was not in control, and someone else would control her.

Pyrrha Nikos was dead. Cinder Fall killed her. Jaune Arc would never love Cinder Fall and Cinder Fall had never loved Jaune Arc. Why did she ever allow herself to think anything else?

Because somewhere, beneath the fire raging within, she had wondered, in her most private moments, if she could've had it: someone to share her life with, to warm her bed and dispel loneliness, to hold her and embrace her and love her in ways they loved no one else. Though it had never been a serious consideration, she had wondered about a place she could call home, a place she might one day raise children within, if she found someone who could take her away from the lonely path she'd known, and show her a world with light.

It was the daydream of a child; a girl more naïve and innocent than herself. A girl like Pyrrha Nikos.

Girls like that didn't survive in this world. And they certainly did not rule over it.

And yet…

Was it so wrong to hope? Was it so wrong to believe in the impossible? Cinder had _seen_ the impossible, effortlessly performed by her mistress. Cinder had _done_ the impossible, in wielding the powers of the Fall Maiden as her own. If she truly wished to make a change, she _could_. She could stop, she could return from all of this.

She could love.

But Salem was invincible. Her Grimm horde would scour the world. Her minions alone were powerful enough to topple kingdoms on their own. Her sole remaining piece of opposition was a drunken lech staying in a seedy inn. It didn't matter what powers Cinder had accrued, she was still no match for Salem.

Cinder relayed her orders of withdrawl to Mercury and Emerald, instructing them to meet at a rendezvous point. Cinder would join them shortly.

After she saw it, just once more.

* * *

Jaune didn't seem surprised when Cinder stepped out of the brush to meet him again. He was still wary of her, still on his guard, but it didn't seem he was going to flee. It didn't seem as though he was angry or upset with her.

"I wish I could tell you more," Cinder assured him, speaking so easily, without pain in each word. "About why these thoughts linger. Your soul was bound with hers', and when… when she died, so too was her soul bound with mine."

"When you killed her," Jaune mouthed.

Cinder avoided his gaze. It hurt so much to see his disappointment, worse than the wounds she bore. "Yes."

Jaune was quiet for several seconds before asking: "Why do you keep doing this?"

"I… I don't expect you to return this, but what I'm feeling now, what embers remain of Pyrrha Nikos within me, they compel me here," Cinder explained. "And I'm not sure how else to say this."

Because she'd never said it before.

"I love you, Jaune Arc," Cinder declared, locking her single eye with both of his.

And she waited to see if those words really did hold the power to change everything.


	4. The Here and Now

**Chapter Four: The Here and Now**

She saw it all, so clearly. How things began. How they ended.

He overcame his petty issues and realized what he had was what he wanted. He accepted that life wouldn't turn out as he'd always planned, because the little bumps in the road that diverted his course were the reasons life could be as vivid and interesting as it was. It certainly wasn't the goal she'd set for herself, to find someone to settle down with and share her life with: that had never been her destiny.

It all seemed so distant now; the conflict and the uncertainty. The world still suffered outside the walls of their home, as the leaderless Grimm still tried to do as they always had and the Faunus still struggled to gain acceptance and equality through one means or another, and people still fought one another over petty grievances that only exacerbated the world's problems further. But outside their home, those were the struggles of people who had not yet found their way. Together, she and Jaune had found the life they wanted, and shared it with each other.

The farm boy returned to his roots and settled the land, and the veteran fighter went out on missions to keep their little corner of the world safe and fertile. Jaune may not have lived up to the family legacy of being a great warrior, but he was a good, earnest, hard-working man, and he could be content with that. With her love he didn't feel the need to prove himself anymore; so long as he had her approval, he was content with his lot in life, and she was relieved she didn't have to worry about him out on the battlefield.

At times things were too simple; she had never expected such a… _domestic_ life for herself, because she had trained for great things, and aspired for recognition. She may have been exceptional, but in her home, alongside him, all she needed was his earnest love.

They talked about starting a family, but she was in no rush. She wondered if Jaune wanted as many as his parents had, and the thought scared her. She'd have been content with two or three, and even _that_ was still just a _possibility_. Jaune, of course, only saw it through the simple lens of having new people to share in his life and to teach his techniques to.

She coveted him enough. Children may come eventually, but she already had to share him with enough of their mutual friends. No matter how long they'd been together, she still felt uncomfortable when he was around Weiss or Ruby, reminiscing about the good old days at Beacon, and she was reminded of a time when he had not been hers', and might've slipped through her fingers; when she might've allowed him to pursue someone else if that was what made him happy.

Now they were together, and she would never lose that. Not when she finally had all she wanted.

It was the last thought that passed through her mind, before she heard the sound of clinking glass. The woman from Mistral who'd masterminded this whole invasion of Grimm and White Fang strode past, gloating about the power she had stolen.

Pyrrha returned to the present, as she thought about the future she would never have had. For her, at least, it seemed her destiny had not changed. She fought against the evils of the world, and fell in battle in defense of her kingdom… just as she was always going to.

It was almost ironic, that this evil woman had given her this end. Pyrrha doubted she'd had any inkling that this was how it was always going to end. Pyrrha looked up at her and summoned defiance; the last face she wanted to show her adversary. "Do you believe in destiny?"

The woman's expression soured. Pyrrha had cut through her bravado and found weakness. "Yes."

Pyrrha watched her summon the glass shards together and construct a bow, and level it forth…

* * *

Cinder had told Jaune he didn't have to reciprocate his feelings, but that had been a half-truth. Cinder wished, she hoped and hoped that somehow this concept of love could really alter things for her, and he would understand her wish and respond to it. Being near him changed her, and changed her in ways she felt made her better. Surely there was something she could offer him, something deeper and more meaningful than just her beauty and her poise and her intellect- something that would allow him to forget the ill she'd done and see the woman wishing to be held and loved. She hoped that somehow she could speak the words and he'd no longer be able to see the blood and ash she'd left behind her.

Cinder could help him forget it all, and take away the pain behind those blue eyes, if he'd let her. Just as he'd healed her with his presence, she could ease the hurt within him, erasing the past and replacing it with only the moment they had together. She doubted he'd ever known such things before, and he would never find better than her. He would not stray, he would not doubt, he would not remember… he would be for her, and her alone.

Why did that thought trouble her? Was it so wrong to want him to change? So wrong to want him to return the feelings she had? It was what Pyrrha Nikos had wanted too, for Jaune Arc to realize that she could make him happy and he could make her whole. The same was true now with Cinder Fall: he just had to realize it and move past the old attachments.

"Then surrender to Ruby and my friends," Jaune told her. "If you're truly sorry, if you want to repent for what you've done- I'll help you. I promise I'll help you try to make amends."

What was this prattle? Cinder had already surrendered by confessing this weakness. Now he sought more from her? Now he wanted her to… what? Be apprehended by a bunch of gifted amateurs? To what end? For what possible reason?

"Jaune," Cinder spoke in a soft coo. "It doesn't have to be this way. We don't have to live within those boundaries. We don't have to fight- we can just move on from this. We can go together, away from the fight."

She saw him seriously consider her offer. How could he not be tempted? How could he not long for her fire in his life?

"I should," Jaune admitted. "Because no matter how I've improved, I know that you're still more dangerous. I hate the thought of it… but if you swear not to harm the others and stop all this, I'll go with you wherever you want, for as long as you want."

So willing to sacrifice his well-being for the sake of others… she'd worried it would get him hurt one day, so she'd sacrificed her well-being instead, so she'd never have to see him be hurt.

But why was he phrasing it so? Didn't he share her wish to run from it all and find happiness elsewhere? Didn't he want to be with her, and share in her love? What did his friends matter in this? And why did he think it some sort of punishment, to surrender himself to her?

She reached towards his face, feeling the warmth in his cheek. He did not recoil this time, staring straight ahead. She preferred him carefree and goofy –natural- but it still pleased her to see he'd gained some steel in his days after Beacon. His determination… how she wished it wasn't directed towards her.

Cinder became increasingly frustrated. Clearly her words weren't provoking the magical reaction they were meant to, so she tried to lean in again. _That_ had produced the desired effect before, as it brought him back to her, and it made him happy.

But Jaune subtly moved his head back. He did not look at her as he quietly muttered: "Stop it…"

What had gone wrong? Why hadn't he seen what was right in front of him?

Why couldn't he just say those three words?

Within her, she felt a different sort of emotion welling up… a rage she could not entirely quantify. Why did he refuse her? How could _anyone_ refuse her? The thought of being denied, it filled her with a monstrous anger that burned at her lips, as though she might spit fire at any moment.

And now she _needed_ to convince him of his folly and see that his happiness was a few words of acceptance away. She had him alone, she could _make_ him hers', she could have him and never release her grip…

…why did that thought make her feel sad?

Because she had never forced him to do anything. If he did not return her love, she would still wish for his happiness. She didn't need to be the love of his life so long as she was in it somewhere, at his side.

That was illogical. Did he not realize how much she was sacrificing for him? How she'd already humbled herself by deigning to confide in him and admit there was something in her life she wanted from him?

Looking at his cheek, looking on as he averted his gaze from her… she understood.

The spark of love had been from Pyrrha Nikos. Upon seeing him reject her, even in this incorporeal state within Cinder Fall, she no longer desired to bring that change. She would not alter him, because she loved him for who he was. And in the here and now, all she wanted was for Jaune to be himself, even if he wasn't hers'.

Did that mean… that it was Cinder's wish to have him? But why?

Because he rejected her. Because he denied her. Because he would not change and become what she wanted him to be.

Because he'd heard her confession and not been moved.

What good was love if it couldn't change anything?

And this possessive need to take him, this desire to conquer him… it was a shallow affectation, as meaningless as the brief bouts of intimacy she'd known before. She didn't need Jaune Arc to sate that wish. She didn't need his approval.

He could keep his loyalty and his honesty. It hadn't saved Pyrrha Nikos. It would not save anyone else he loved.

And Cinder quietly promised herself, she would destroy those he loved, to rob him further of whatever hope he had. She'd crush his aspirations and show him he was a fool for letting such an incredible opportunity pass because of some childish need to do good and some foolish wish to find justice in capturing her.

"I made a mistake," Cinder coolly told him. "I thought you were ready to do something more than this."

"I'm sorry to disappoint you," Jaune softly replied, still not meeting her eye.

He was weak and cowardly and would not have given her that ideal future. Salem was right –she had always been right- he would not love a ghost. And without the ghost, Cinder did not love him.

"You'll regret this moment," Cinder promised. "I could've made you happy."

"I don't know if I could have done that for you," Jaune conceded. "But I would've tried to help you find your way back. I would have tried to find it in me to forgive you."

Forgive her? For what?

Fulfilling her destiny?

Cinder felt a tangible wetness in her eye, but he was still looking away. She turned her back on him before he could notice. He did not merit her tears.

So why was she crying?

"Still a foolish child…" Cinder mused before she dashed off into the forest.

Once away from him, she felt it again… the phantom pain of her lost eye, the stilted scratching in her arm. And that deep weight in her chest, like she'd felt when she told Jaune to be honest in pursuing Weiss, even if that meant she'd lose him to her.

Salem would rid her of these conflicting thoughts. Soon, she would be free of doubt. She would be able to resume the hunt, to further seek the power that awaited her at the end of her dark, lonely road.

Hearth, home, family, love… that was _not_ her destiny. And neither, it seemed, was Jaune Arc.

* * *

Jaune returned to the inn after meandering in the forest for a bit. He met his teammates in the lobby, Nora dragging Ren out the door to go in search for him, only for him to reassure her he'd only been late because he'd been lost in thought, and had forgotten the way back in this unfamiliar new city. Nora accepted this with ease, and Jaune suspected that meant Ruby had _not_ told her about what Cinder did. Otherwise he was sure she'd have a lot more to ask him, or some lesson to impart about the dangers of beautiful criminals. Ren only nodded: he'd found more peace than ever in conquering a demon from his past, to the point Jaune's night of indiscretion seemed beneath his notice.

Jaune wished he could say the same, that he'd overcome a monster from his past and alleviated the burden. Instead he only had more questions, but not questions it seemed he'd be able to answer. If Pyrrha still existed within Cinder, she hadn't been able to change her in any meaningful way. And all this strange night had resulted in was him feeling more and more lost, and Ruby doubting him.

Ruby…

Jaune excused himself from his teammates and knocked on her door. She was awake, of course: watching over her uncle and not daring to relax her guard. She didn't speak when she greeted him; merely jerked her head to let him in and step past the sleeping Qrow to the balcony.

"So did you find anything new?" Ruby asked him, trying to sound casual.

Jaune wasn't sure where to begin with this tale. He wasn't sure how much to tell her or what she would believe. So he focused on his own actions, which were easy to recount. "I asked her to surrender to us- if she was honest, she should want to make amends."

Ruby seemed genuinely surprised; perhaps she expected him to have been taken in by her charms and come either to boast or seek forgiveness. She composed herself quickly. "Didn't go for it, huh?"

Jaune bitterly shook his head. "I wanted to believe that I could help her, that maybe I could do some good for her, if Pyrrha was still in there. But the more she talked, the more she tried to pull me away and towards her way of thinking, the more I realized it was just another game she was playing."

Ruby seemed quite captivated by his tale. She seemed… happy? No doubt she'd been concerned Jaune would succumb to Cinder's wiles. But what was a pretty face that belied an evil mind?

"I just wanted to believe it was possible," Jaune admitted. "I don't want to just fight against her and hate her forever… I wanted to believe that I could make things right. I wanted to believe I could change her, or that Pyrrha would somehow influence her, make her a better person… it was stupid."

Ruby rested a soothing hand on his shoulder. "You can't change someone if they don't want to change."

Cinder had tried to warp him into a state that benefited her, promising him her love and release from his burdens. But it was not in him to abandon his mission. Even when he considered accepting her offer he'd tried to bargain a way to benefit Ruby and the others.

Jaune reached up and felt her hand, interlocking their fingers. Ruby smiled up at him. "I'm glad you're okay, Jaune. I'm sorry you couldn't help her."

She may have still doubted him, but she didn't seem as concerned now. She seemed quite content to have him back and at her side.

Maybe he should've stopped chasing ghosts and saved who he could. Pyrrha would not have allowed him to waver when his friends still needed him, and no matter how he wished to have her back, that was a wish that ran contrary to reality. And terrible burden though reality imposed on him, he'd rather be fighting alongside his friends against uncertainty than abandon them for some glimmer of the past he'd left behind.

Ruby leaned close and rested her head on his shoulder as they looked over at Mistral, the morning light seeping in over the hills in the distance.

* * *

Cinder felt agony as Salem weaved the thread of Aura out of her mouth, feeling a combination of intense pressure on her chest and throat and a burning, acidic corrosion running through her body. When Salem finally relaxed her grip, Cinder fell to her knees, hacking and coughing in pain, trying to relieve herself of the bile, but finding nothing to expel in her heaves.

"It is done," Salem observed.

"She's… gone?" Cinder wheezed between coughs.

"Not completely," Salem replied. "For a brief moment, your souls were united in common purpose. That memory is now your own; I could not remove it without damaging your own soul."

"Don't…care…" Cinder shot back. "Want… it gone…"

"No, Cinder," Salem shook her head. "Your role in my plans is too important. I will not risk your well-being so you can forget your moment of weakness. Better you should remember that moment, so you know what mistake you cannot repeat."

Cinder looked up at her mistress, as Salem slowly circled the floating pool of Aura between her fingers, before closing her fist around it, concealing it all beneath her pale skin.

"Rest, child," Salem instructed. "I will find a new assignment for you, soon, to put you back on track."

Cinder grimly nodded as Salem headed away, leaving the girl from Mistral to cough a few more times, still tasting acid on the back of her tongue.

Once she made to her feet, Cinder stepped out to look out the windows of Salem's castle, towards the pools of black blood on the scarred terrain, as more and more Grimm emerged from the darkness, given life by negative emotion. She briefly wondered if her own actions had birthed any of them… or if Jaune's despair in being unable to reach her had created one as well.

So she would retain that memory, of weakness… when she had wanted to confess her love to him, and tried to bring about change, as though love had some unseen power; as though speaking three words could somehow bring a person happiness.

A childish weakness. Now she would remember the humiliation, and let it fester, using it to compel her, to drive her to become stronger and shed that weakness. She would let the failure burn within her, until she could burn away the source when the time came, and expel the tumor from her soul once and for all.

When Cinder rested that night, she had a dream… not one she'd wished for, but not one she could honestly say she disliked… of her, whole, complete, and free of her pain, and him, building the farm and talking about the children they wished for… sitting down and watching the sun set over their home, holding hands, resting their foreheads together, sharing a kiss with the same fervor and passion as their first…

Just a dream.

Just an echo of a memory of a distant, dying fire… quickly to be dismissed and forgotten, disappearing in the dark of night, and replaced by the dim, lonely road.

That was her future. That was her destiny.

There was no love there. But then there never had been. It had never been for her.

And she had to keep going. Because there was nothing waiting behind her but the wishes of a foolish child.

Cinder took her steps forth and did not look back.


	5. Hatred

**Chapter Five: Hatred**

Again and again, she asked Emerald to repeat the action, so she could see that silver-eyed girl burn. Emerald had cast the illusion so often she was becoming exhausted, and the illusion flickered. It lacked the depth and complexity it had before, and Cinder could see its imperfections. That was stoking the flames of her anger further, and with each successive burst from her palm, she felt the pain in her arm and the emptiness behind her eyepatch.

What had once been a very therapeutic exercise was proving ineffective now, and the release of flames to cleanse her of the sight of her hated enemy was little more than an outburst of frustration. Worse, there was no ebb to her displeasure: she was instead reminded that she was destroying nothing but an illusion, and the consistent reminder that she could not harm the silver-eyed girl made the ache of her wounds even worse.

Salem had been pleased observing Cinder perform these exercises before, impressed by her disciple's dedication in pursuing vengeance. She intended it to steel Cinder's resolve, to make her stronger slowly but surely and keep her active and driven during her period of recovery. Unfortunately, Cinder had crossed too far. What had once been a useful exercise had transformed into self-indulgence.

Hatred was a useful tool when it drove one to excel, but hatred vented at a single target wasn't enough kindling to sustain the fire. Cinder may have been driven to settle a personal vendetta, but what good was that in plans as far-reaching as Salem's own? Once Cinder knocked off the silver-eyed girl, where would her eye turn? What motivation would she have?

It _was_ necessary to remove the impediment of a silver-eyed warrior, and probably best to do so while she was still young and inexperienced. The girl had already managed to injure Cinder and significantly delay Salem's plans, and though the details had been… unclear from his ranting, it seemed she and her circle of allies had gotten the better of Tyrian as well. Nurturing Cinder's hatred for the girl would be beneficial in the short term, but there were greater trials ahead than just one little girl.

And for Cinder to play the role Salem had in mind, she would need to _hate_. Not to hate one person, but to hate them _all_. To hate everything that existed as it was, so she would feel compelled to burn it all away and leave naught but ashes to be Salem's groundwork. Cinder had been so promising when she was recruited, driven by the desire to stand apart from –and more importantly, _above_ \- her peers. That ambition had morphed into an insatiable desire when she'd absorbed half of the Maiden's power, and the burning in her soul had been amplified by feeling incomplete.

Then, just when Salem feared Cinder might grow too big for her bonds, she was brought low and once again in her mistress's thrall. Salem tried to nurture her drives again, but Cinder's focus had shifted. Cinder's goals had always been personal, but they'd always been in alignment with Salem's own. Now… now things were very much _out_ of alignment.

In the process of being humbled, Cinder had drawn a smaller, more honest soul into herself… and now Salem feared she was tainted. Salem betrayed no such concern to her acolyte, of course, but when she'd been unable to extract the essence of that soul, Salem had to quickly disguise her doubt by construing her act as a punishment.

Cinder had shared, if only for a moment, a common goal with that honest soul. Just when Salem had Cinder under her thumb, the girl had suddenly gained an unexpected emotion that could complicate her plans, if not undo them. If there was one thing that was certain to undo meticulous planning, it was an emotional response.

"That's enough," Salem instructed, as Cinder's tantrum began before Emerald could even summon the façade. "Rest, child."

Cinder looked as though she wished to protest, but complied. She knew better than to defy her mistress in the state she was in. Cinder bowed her head and exited, while Emerald staggered away, betraying her own weakness only once _her_ mistress was out of sight. Salem made a note of the girl's display of loyalty: at least that was an emotion she could make use of.

The one Cinder had experienced… was much too unpredictable to rely on.

* * *

Salem waited a few hours before checking to confirm her suspicion. Once she was certain Cinder had fallen asleep, Salem entered her room to sit at her bedside. Undoubtedly Cinder was practiced in defending herself from assassins, but there were no footsteps for her to hear, and no breaths for her to feel. Salem leaned in close, opening her hand over Cinder's sleeping face.

Slowly, Salem drew Cinder's Aura, the light of her soul, weaving it softly between her fingers. After several minutes of pulling the strings of life together, Salem finally built the image racing through the girl's mind, and Salem peered into her dreams from her perch in the dark.

Cinder kept trying to run from it, to leave the thought behind, but she kept returning to the moment in the boy's embrace, when she felt as though his Aura had linked with hers', and healed her of her wounds. From there, the images flashed –muddled and incomplete, but clear enough- of a future with him, of a home, of children, of a long and loving bond; of all the possibilities that might exist.

It was a tricky thing to undo: it was an emotion born of the rational wish to find a companion and the irrational drive of hope. It was the very thing Salem had to destrict and yet now it had taken root in her most valuable subordinate.

Cinder had never felt this emotion –at least, not in this context- before, so it was no surprise she could not escape its grip, even if she wished to. And if Salem tried to directly assist her in throwing off this infection, she might reveal a flaw in her plans to Cinder. And that would only add another variable Salem could not predict to an already complicated plan and already fragile alliance. Cinder had been such a rare find, and to lose that now would put Salem back _years_ if ever the two were forced to clash.

It may not have been possible to rid Cinder of this unstable and unpredictable emotion _without_ revealing Salem's hand, but it _may_ have been possible to remove the hope of seeing its completion. There was a simple solution available: kill the boy, and extinguish her hope.

But how? Watts was in Mistral; he could perform the deed. But if word got back to Cinder –and it _would_ , because Watts would delight in reminding her he'd had to clean up her mess- then she might realize Salem had interceded on her behalf, and would be curious why an otherwise unremarkable boy merited her attention.

No, it had to be Cinder who destroyed him. She had to make that leap herself, and subsume this emotion entirely. Perhaps by removing the impediment, and destroying her hope herself, she would reach the point Salem desired. Cinder may never return to what she had been, but with a careful, guiding hand she could be made into an even better weapon. There was no hatred like that born in the aftermath of the death of hope.

Salem slowly weaved the strings of Aura back into Cinder, leaving without a step or a word. She had to be careful in arranging this now, so her hand would go undetected. Where to strike, and how?

Watts had met with Lionheart at Haven… and the boy was in his city with the rest of his party.

Lionheart may have been her creature, but he was soft-hearted and weak. He might not have the stomach to kill the innocent, even if that was the most prudent course. He would try to find a half-measure, whatever it took to appease his mistress if only he could keep his hands unbloodied and his conscience clean.

And _that_ would ensure her success.

* * *

She appeared before him again, standing on the hilltop overlooking the city limits of Mistral, where she'd insisted he meet her. He expected her to return, because he was sure she was just as confused as he was.

"Why do you keep doing this?"

She mumbled something, unable to meet his gaze. But she quickly overcame that uncertainty, and managed to lock his eye. She'd prepared herself now, and was prepared to take the leap.

"I love you, Jaune Arc."

And those words changed everything.

Jaune abandoned doubt. He forgot the pain she had caused him. Those were unpleasant thoughts and bad memories that he would not be anchored to. Not when the future was so much more inviting.

He rushed to embrace her, holding her tightly in his arms. They held each other for a long moment, then locked eyes again. She smiled at him, in a way he'd never seen; a smile not born of arrogance and cruelty, but affection and gratitude. Jaune thought he might do whatever he needed to if he could just see more of that smile.

Even wounded, even broken as she had been, she was beautiful: a dancing flame illuminating the darkness. And she was his, and wanted to be his.

He kissed her, taking the lead for the first time. She'd eagerly anticipated it, and reciprocated his wish. She reached a hand to hold his cheek, and with each kiss they exchanged she ran one finger over his chin, with each breath she pulled him just a little closer.

Then, at last he released her, however reluctantly…

…and saw Pyrrha, pushing him back into his weapons locker. "I'm sorry," she whispered, closing the door over his head with her Semblance, and typing in the code to send him away, to free him from the danger… so she could face that dangerous woman alone.

That dangerous woman who'd kissed him… who he'd wanted to kiss…

…who killed Pyrrha…

* * *

Jaune awoke with a start, rolling over from his sleeping bag onto the cold ground. He took a moment to catch his breath before moving to a sitting position, uncomfortable though it was on the hard floor.

That dream again. The same dream each night that followed that moment, that long and uncomfortable night when their greatest enemy had confessed that she'd fallen in love with him. When she'd kissed him. When, for a brief moment, he'd fallen into her embrace and not wished to leave it.

He'd been strong on that night, and tried to coax her out, to reveal the selfishness of her intent and not succumb to her charms. He'd offered to be what she wished, if she would just make a change herself and not be the threat to the world she'd been in months past. Ruby had been proud of him, for trying to help her find the right path, not surrendering to his desire for vengeance… or for Cinder herself, that he'd never expected to have.

Yet in his dreams he surrendered every night, again and again, bowing to her whims because it meant she would be his. And when he awoke he hated himself for it, for being so willing to forget Pyrrha and her sacrifice… and for what? For a kiss? For an embrace?

He didn't want to think about it. He wasn't that sort of person. When it had mattered, he'd done the right thing and held fast, and she'd revealed her true self. And because he'd resisted her, he'd regained his friend's trust and not dishonored Pyrrha's memory.

So why did his dreams tell him that he should've chosen differently? Hadn't he done the right thing?

The dreams were just dreams, but each night since the first, he'd made the same decision and given in to Cinder's embrace. Only once had he refused her.

Jaune had heard once that the person you truly were was the person no one else saw; the one who acted without concern for the judgment of others, because he could act without their knowledge. And alone in his own mind, he'd given in to her. In his own mind he answered to her wish in the affirmative.

Once he'd refused her, and every other time he'd embraced her. There were two versions of him now, with conflicting actions to decipher. Was the real him the one who'd spurned her advances in the forest, or the one who'd embraced her when he knew there was no consequence?

Jaune wanted not to dwell on this, but there was little else to think about, sitting on the cold floor of the empty room. It was either agonize over his unclear feelings, or listen to the steady dripping of a water leak in the ceiling, and he'd gotten bored of that game yesterday, after his first attempt to leave had been routed. He was just glad he'd insisted Ren and Nora take the beds in their room; at least sleeping on a cold, hard surface was still second nature to him and he hadn't gotten used to anything more comfortable. And the room didn't have any other fixtures or furnishings to draw his attention.

Well, other than the bars and the armored guard ten feet from him, anyway.

Three days now, he'd sat in this cell, trying to make sense of his new lodgings and trying very much not to dwell on his uncomfortable thoughts, but there was little else to do. After the first day he'd wrenched at the bars and struggled to free himself, demanding to know where his friends had been taken, only to be beaten back by his captors. He'd tried again, only to be struck unconscious and put against the wall, to wake later and lose his sense of time. He didn't know if it was day or night; the cell was a dark stone room illuminated only by a wall-mounted torch on the other side of the metal bars. He was missing a period of hours, and since the guards hadn't bothered to feed him yet he wasn't able to infer anything about local meal habits to help him piece things together.

He was waiting, reserving his strength. He had a vague memory of Qrow escaping their captors, after Ruby told him to run and find them again later. He also remembered Ren and Nora acquitting themselves well and clearing a path for Ruby's uncle to escape, so presumably they just needed to bide their time and things would be sorted in due course.

But then, Jaune _also_ had a hazy recollection of his friends being gradually overwhelmed by a lot of armored Mistralian soldiers, and even hazier recollections of being carried alongside them, drifting in and out of consciousness, through dimly-lit halls like the one outside his cell. He'd tried shouting for them on the first day and heard nothing in reply. He'd tried listening on the second day, but discerned neither torture nor attempts to escape. Each night he forced himself to sleep, trying not to worry about the others and what had become of them, only to then be left alone with the same dream, again and again… giving himself something entirely new and different to worry about instead.

He glanced out at the armored guard on the other side of the bars, wearing the black armored helm he'd seen on the helpful scouts who'd rescued them and brought them to Mistral in the first place from Kuroyuri. They hadn't given a reason, and they hadn't been any more forthcoming since he'd arrived and been left in his cell. Never a dull moment, if nothing else.

Jaune moved over to sit against the stone wall of his cell, glancing at the torch on the wall outside. He focused on it, not thinking about the black armored guard a few feet from it, or the metal lines that separated him from it, just trying to take it in, thinking about how he might reach it, the only tool left to him besides the sleeping bag they'd kindly allowed him to keep.

But as he watched the flames slowly dance on their kerosene- soaked head, his thoughts turned from escape to recollection… to the very thoughts he'd been trying to avoid in the first place. And once again, he warred with himself, trying to dismiss these dreams as a stupid adolescent fantasy. It was a lack of impulse control –a _flaw_ \- that made him have these thoughts. That should've told him all he needed to know to dismiss these feelings.

Somehow that thought didn't help.

But it did pass the time, and several minutes –possibly even an hour- went by, and amidst the steady drips of the water leak in the cracks above his cell and the occasional crackle from the torch or the shuffling of the guard's feet, he heard a different sound in the distance, of a struggle down the hall.

Jaune immediately rose to his feet. The guard standing outside became alert and moved from his post out of Jaune's field of vision. Jaune rushed over to see, tightly grasping the bars of his cell and trying to look outside, only for his jailer to return and violently shove him back, driving him to the stone floor with a heavy fist.

Jaune tried to rise, catching a glimpse of what was going on outside: a second guard was carrying someone over his shoulder, adorned in a shawl and cloak. Jaune's guard was unlocking the cell door, and Jaune heard a rusty creak as the gate briefly swung open. He tried to move in and take advantage of the opportunity, only to be intercepted by the second guard, tossing the person he'd carried right in Jaune's path, knocking him over again from the force of the new impact.

Jaune felt soft skin under the cloak: a woman? He tried to get out from under her and reach the door, but heard the clang and lock as his jailer sealed the exit.

He resigned himself to his failed escape attempt and turned his attention to his new cellmate. He finished pulling himself out from beneath her and gingerly moved to assist her to a sitting position up against the nearest stone wall, searching for injury.

However, as he moved her, the rectangular cloth over her head fell away, revealing a short mane of dark brown hair, and a large patch covering her left eye, fastened tightly on her skin and brushing up against two large scars running over her nose.

Where before Jaune had eagerly moved to help, he now drew back, unable to believe it. Had he gone mad after only a few short days? Or had she really ended up in here with him?

Which was worse?

When she opened her right eye, and they locked gaze, he knew… because he saw her reaction. Were she a figment of his imagination, she wouldn't be surprised to see him.

"Cinder," he whispered.

When she saw him, she felt it… the brief cessation of her pain as she recalled feeling his embrace, sharing in the light of his soul. Despite her attempt to flee from him, to find her way back to the path she'd been walking on…

"Jaune Arc," she whispered back, her voice once again whole and free of pain.

It seemed, even after he'd rejected her and she'd fled from him, the hand of fate had drawn them together again.


	6. The Cell

**Chapter Six: The Cell**

Nora was still bashing against the cell bars. She wasn't as furious as she'd been on the first day, and even her seemingly inexhaustible energy supply was beginning to wane. Ren had remained calm, as he tended to, finding a corner to patiently observe the hall outside their cell, analyzing the patterns and movements of the guards. While Nora drew their attention with her antics, Ren found the weakness and vulnerabilities in their patrols and was getting close to mapping out their entire schedule.

Ruby suspected both were even more worried about Jaune than she was -they were incredibly protective of him- but they didn't share her own feelings of guilt. Ruby had confided that vulnerability to Jaune while they'd scoured the ruins of Kuroyuri together, and he'd assuaged her concerns, restoring in her hope and optimism when it had been sorely lacking. Now she felt uncomfortably reminded of what she'd dragged her friends into.

Why hadn't Jaune been thrown in with them? Was he even still alive?

If they hurt him… if they _killed_ him… because of her…

Ruby tried not to dwell on the thought, but it was hard to think of much else, waiting either for Ren to find a weakness in the guards to exploit or for Qrow to find his way into this jail and release them. Ruby had already exhausted herself trying to figure out why Mistral's soldiers had abruptly turned on them and attacked on their way to see the headmaster of Haven, and now she was stuck worrying about her best friend while he was out of her sight and in harm's way, largely because of her.

If Jaune was unharmed –and she wasn't sure how well he'd come out of the ambush, her memories were hazy- then he'd been set aside from them for a reason. They didn't seem to fear having _three_ prisoners in one place, so why devote extra cell space to one more?

Ruby had an idea who might want Jaune isolated and alone, and they _were_ on her home turf.

That thought was only more worrying.

* * *

Jaune sat on the opposite wall from Cinder, leaving eight feet of separation between them. She was trying to avert his gaze, but after staring at the sleeping bag, the water leak, and the torch, she'd quickly run out of other places to look. Jaune was quietly waiting, collecting his thoughts… it was rare to see him so contemplative.

Cinder tried to piece together how she'd come to be here. She'd been training under Salem's eye, then slept, then found herself drifting in and out of consciousness as someone carried her over a great distance in open wilderness, then been carried by someone new through these dim corridors and tossed in this cell. She wasn't sure how much time had passed, but a little application of her powers and she'd melt the iron bars these foolish soldiers thought could hold her.

But then… she might hurt Jaune if she burnt hot enough to rend metal…

What did that matter? He'd refused her, and she no longer need pay him heed. Really, she'd be better served killing him first and _then_ escaping, if only to-

She'd been in Salem's castle. No one would dare enter it without Salem's invitation, and no one would be able to steal Cinder away without Salem's blessing. She was here because Salem wished her to be here. But why?

Cinder finally met Jaune's eye again, feeling the pleasant side effect of the aches in her arm and eye dull, fading from her thoughts. Salem had been aware of Cinder's –of _Pyrrha's_ \- feelings for Jaune and how Cinder had briefly lost her way. So why had her mistress brought her back here?

To kill him?

That would be logical. It would remove an unknown variable from Salem's game, and remove a hindrance that had already blighted Cinder. But then, Salem _had_ insisted she wanted Cinder to recall her weakness and thus never finished extracting the essence of Pyrrha Nikos' soul from within her. So if she didn't want Cinder to kill the boy, what then?

Lure him away to join their ranks? Use him to find the silver-eyed girl?

Or just to remind Cinder of her failure and how effortlessly Salem could take away what she had given?

"Are you hurt?" Jaune asked tentatively. It was a far cry from the confidence he'd shown in their last meeting, but maybe he hadn't expected to see her again. Maybe his hesitance was rooted in surprise. Maybe he just wasn't sure what to ask and was just fumbling through the conversation.

Cinder shook her head. Though she felt being near him would enable her to speak, she really didn't want to interact with him more than she had to… in case she might betray the same trepidation and doubt. In case she might show weakness. Again.

Jaune seemed uncomfortable: much more so than usual. She was easily able to discern when he was off-balance, because he was so honest he could never maintain a deception for long. How it pained her to see him doubt himself, because even when he was showboating and acting the fool she'd enjoyed the sheer zest in his action-

Cinder shook her head. It was Pyrrha Nikos who loved the fool. To her, a fool was just a fool.

But why was he so far out of balance? Did he fear her? Was he hiding something?

Questions for later. For now, she thought she might continue to weigh her thoughts, to better discern the weaknesses in her enemy. And he _was_ her enemy. He always had been, save for a single night of bizarre circumstance.

And hopefully, focusing on her resentment for him would fester long enough she'd be able to lash out, and free herself from these bindings… and march right back to Salem's stronghold and learn the meaning of this lesson being imparted against her will.

* * *

The time wiled away, and Jaune slowly drifted off. Cinder was tired herself, but did not reveal that to her cellmate. When Jaune went to rest, he offered her the use of his sleeping bag in place of the stone floor; a kind gesture, but not one Cinder deigned to acknowledge. Even on the cold ground he'd drifted off, trying to regain his waning strength, and even in these dire straits offering her a modicum of comfort and support.

The stupid boy, giving resources to his enemy. Worse even than that, leaving himself vulnerable in tight quarters and falling asleep right in front of her.

She could kill him, right then and there. A small bit of pressure to the back of his neck. A flame in his throat as he tried to breathe. His precious sleeping bag pressed over his face and held down while he struggled in a futile effort to live. All possible, all too easy.

So why did she just want to watch him sleep… and maybe ruffle his hair a bit?

These lingering thoughts were infuriating. One moment her goal was crystal clear, and her hatred gave her calm and clarity. The next she was invaded by the ghost of Pyrrha Nikos, tainting her thoughts with emotions and memories of a different place and time.

Partially. _Some_ of that was gone, successfully extracted from within her. But all that left was a disjointed mess of feelings, including the unpleasant memories of the ones born from Cinder's own thoughts. And Cinder herself was enjoying looking at him, taking the time to see him without the obstruction of time or the burden of a task to mitigate her.

Just her and him… alone in their own corner of the world…

"Leave us."

Cinder instantly turned her eye to the cell bars. The Mistralian soldier was slow to comply, but did as the strange man instructed. Cinder instantly leapt to her feet. She knew that voice…

Arthur Watts stepped past the departing soldier, leaning on the opposite wall of the hallway. "Evening, Cinder. I do love your new accommodations."

She glared at him, but carefully constrained her anger. She wanted to burn his smug smile right off his face, but if Watts was here, it meant either he or Salem were making a move in their game, and she had to let him expose the hand before she reacted.

"Why… are you…" Cinder wheezed, feeling that familiar scratching in her throat, cursing herself her unimposing dialect.

"Spare me your butchering of language," Watts requested. "I just came to brief you on your role in the mission."

Mission? So Salem had placed her there for a reason… but if Watts was deigning to speak to her, that meant he had to be involved as well. That meant there was something _big_ in the works.

"Salem's presented you as a peace offering to Lionheart," Watts explained. "A simple trade for his cooperation in apprehending the silver-eyed girl and the huntsman Qrow Branwen."

So the rest of Jaune's allies were imprisoned as well. Including that drunken fool?

"There is a way to buy back your freedom, of course- all you need do is kill your fellow prisoners and bring back their heads," Watts explained. "Hopefully it won't be _too_ difficult for you to kill such…" Watts glanced back at the sleeping Jaune, "…easy prey."

"Though, of course, you could be exposed to those silver eyes again and demonstrate my point clearly to Salem," Watts added.

This had to be Watts' plan: Salem wouldn't risk the maiden's power leaving her and migrating to a new host by putting her in the path of the silver-eyed girl. But how did Cinder killing these targets benefit Watts? Presumably if she escaped it would undermine whatever barter he'd done with Lionheart, and if she claimed credit for removing what few active enemies they had left, what would there be for Watts to gain?

Or… did he know about her and Jaune? Was he testing her?

Cinder looked over at the sleeping Jaune. With a snap of her fingers he could be gone and out of her mind forever.

Her ostensible ally was watching now. If she showed weakness now… if she hesitated too long…

But if she killed him now…

She saw a flash of them, lying together on a comfortable bed, Jaune, still asleep, putting an arm over her and pulling her closer, and her feeling his heartbeat against her back. She looked down at her hand, poised to kill him, to unleash all her anger and hate and alleviate the burden within her…

Then she lowered her hand, letting it fall at her side, still looking down at Jaune on the stone ground.

"Pathetic," Watts scoffed. "How many more failures do you expect Salem will tolerate from you?"

He put his hands behind his back and turned, Cinder glaring at his profile. "Well, if you _do_ manage to find your nerve, try not to take too long. We have an opportunity to eliminate several obstacles at once, and as it seems you insist on spurning that chance, I suspect I'll have to clean up your mess… _again_."

Cinder watched him step aside, staying on her guard. She waited for several seconds, listening intently, only to hear a second set of footsteps as the first guard returned to his post outside. For a 'briefing' Watts had left her with more questions than answers. He had no authority over her, so he was feigning this was Salem's plan… or worse, he really _was_ delivering instructions, telling her to kill these targets to regain the favor of her mistress.

Jaune Arc had spurned her. He'd demanded she change, that she humble herself before the person she hated most. She had been able to forget Pyrrha Nikos' love of him then, to let her hatred power her again, even though she would've been left alone again… and hurt.

And what was she holding out hope for? That he'd realize his folly and take her up on her offer and flee with her, even though Salem would inevitably find them and punish Cinder for her betrayal? These thoughts passing through her mind were just illusions, and she should've dismissed them. She should've learned from the clear mistake.

There was something about this boy. Something that reached through the fires raging within her and brought a peaceful calm to soothe her heart.

Was that all she wanted from him? To have his company and be free of pain and unburdened by the weight of her task?

What did she know of him, exactly?

Cinder leaned against the wall and took the time to collect her thoughts, peering through the scattered winds of the memories of two souls in conflict, piecing together what she could.

* * *

Cinder woke feeling a bit uncomfortably warm. She was still pressed to the stone wall, but sometime during her slumber the sleeping bag had found its way to her. She wondered if she'd unconsciously reached over to take it herself, or Jaune had placed it there on her behalf in some misguided attempt to help.

The latter seemed most likely. He'd brought her an extra blanket even when she had a massive fever and was already sweating through the sheets in their dorm-

Cinder shook her head. Another memory not her own. A useful piece of information, at least. Another to add to the jumbled but comprehensive list.

Cinder focused her attention on Jaune, sitting eight feet away, across the cell from her. He was awake now, just staring at the floor. He looked… guilty, as though he was averting her gaze because he wanted to conceal something from her.

She – _Pyrrha_ \- knew that look. He'd worn it the night he confessed he'd forged his transcripts to Beacon. He wasn't simply troubled by his thoughts; he found himself to be at fault. What had he done that merited such guilt?

Or perhaps… what had he failed to do?

Cinder continued to stare at him. She would _not_ allow herself to break before he did. She refused to let go of her pride. Not yet.

Slowly, eventually, Jaune looked up and met her eye. He tried to hide that guilty look by putting on a look of innocent curiosity. "Something wrong?"

"Not with me," Cinder answered, feeling her voice become whole again. "But you… you're carrying some terrible burden, aren't you?"

She regained her confidence when she saw him avert his eyes again. She had him dead to rights. It felt good to disarm him, to remind herself that she was still as sharp and cunning as ever.

"What could possibly weigh on your mind, Jaune Arc?" Cinder asked him, looking for a suitable place to dig deeper. "What could you have done that was so terrible?"

Still Jaune didn't answer her. Some part of Cinder was very much enjoying tearing him down, even if another part of her was growing steadily more uncomfortable in seeing him writhe. She had to press on, to force him to reveal himself. She had her pride, and she would see him reveal weakness to her, just as she had to him.

"I've been thinking about that night," Jaune admitted. "About what you said to me on the hill."

Of course he would bring that up and undermine her efforts. Still, Cinder dismissed it and pressed on. "Regretting the choice you made?"

"Yes," Jaune answered simply.

And suddenly Cinder's need to move ahead led to her being caught completely unaware by an oncoming strike. She'd rushed ahead only to be bowled over by the weight of a simple word.

Still, she composed herself. "Really… such a shame…"

"Please don't do that," Jaune requested, "Please, just be honest."

Had he seen through her so easily? Perhaps she _had_ lost a step… no, clearly he was just trying to deflect from his own failings and put the onus back on her. It was a shameful tactic of a cornered man, and she would not be dissuaded. "What is honest, Jaune Arc? Were you lying when you denied me before?"

"I never denied it," Jaune answered. "I said what I thought I should have. I didn't know if you were still trying to deceive me, or how to respond to your feelings or… can we just be honest with each other? Can we just say what we mean?"

"You first," Cinder insisted.

"Fine," Jaune agreed. "I felt something for you. I don't know if… I don't know if I could call it _love_ the way you did, but I felt… a spark.

"And I hate that I felt that way," Jaune continued, being unable to hold her gaze, but quickly reasserting himself and looking ahead again. "I tried to convince myself it was true, that Pyrrha really was in there somewhere… but she's gone, and even when I accepted that she was gone, I still wanted something from you and I didn't want to admit it."

She had ensnared him after all. How could she not? Had she not been injured by the silver-eyed girl, had she still possessed her left eye, all Cinder would need do to earn his forgiveness and devotion would be to cast him a coy smile. She'd already kissed him twice; she should've had him at her beck and call.

"So why did you put on such ridiculous conditions?" Cinder interjected. "Why did you insist on trying to chain me to your whims?"

"Chain-" Jaune repeated, before steeling himself again. "I wanted to _h_ elp you! I wanted to help you atone for what you'd done!"

"What is there to atone for? What have I done?" Cinder demanded.

"You… do you not get it?" Jaune was flabbergasted. "Do you not feel any guilt for what you've done?"

"No," Cinder immediately quipped.

But no, that wasn't true. She felt no guilt about killing Pyrrha Nikos, but…

There were so many. They hadn't all deserved it. Some had simply been in the wrong place at the wrong time, not actively trying to move in her path.

She heard the sound of clinking glass. She remembered the smoke rising up from the blowpipe, and how she felt the fire well within her, and the aches in her hands reached a fever pitch and she needed to lash out.

Cinder refocused her attention on Jaune, returning to the present. He looked… disappointed, but in her. Not guilty about his feelings. Disappointed. In _her_.

What right did he have to judge her? Did he know _anything_ about her? Anything beyond the fact she was beautiful and had recently been overwhelmed by someone else's feelings?

What made him any better? He chose to pursue the path of a huntsman to follow in the footsteps of his ancestors and their warrior traditions, not out of any sense of duty or self-sacrifice. His goal had been self-interest, just as Cinder's had been.

Why didn't that assuage her concern? Why didn't that make her feel any better?

Because whatever his reasons had been before, now he was fighting against those who threatened the world when he could simply return home and be a farmer, out of harm's way. Her… at what point could she have stopped what she was doing? When could she have come back from that life? Cinder took a moment to concede the point. "Yes."

Jaune looked up expectantly, but she quickly clarified. "No, Jaune Arc, I don't regret what I did at Beacon. But I _do_ have regrets."

He resumed that disappointed look, but now it was tempered by curiosity. "And they are?"

There was that sound of glass again. She heard the breath from the gaffer. Like it was playing out right in front of her. Again.

"Well, I've nowhere else to be," Cinder acknowledged. "You want to know who I am, Jaune Arc?"

"Yes," Jaune confirmed. There was that honesty again.

He might regret that too. If nothing else, Cinder would see just how committed he was to changing her, once he knew how monumental the task was.

Maybe if he knew he would lose his own unhelpful, complicated emotions. Maybe he'd understand why she couldn't comply with his terms and return from the path she was on.

Cinder locked his gaze and spoke. "It began when a god whispered in my ear."


	7. Stop

**Chapter Seven: Stop**

Fall in Anima brought cold winds from the snowy north and heavy mists from the massive sea at the center of the continent. In a small village, the easiest way to conserve resources was to congregate at the businesses where fires raged, between the blacksmiths and the cooks helping to bring their bits of warmth to the community.

Or, if you were poor and shunned, even amongst the tight-knit, you made do with puffs of smoke from the blowpipe. It was fortunate Mistral was so affluent and had a demand for fine molded glass, but they _remained_ affluent by shortchanging on the price of goods, and her parents were far too accommodating of their buyers' whims. As a result, they never managed to improve their lot and uplift themselves, and they remained in their hovel, amidst their malformed shards of glass littering the floor and their blowpipe giving them a meager allotment of warmth.

She coveted those brief bursts of heat, so small as she was, she climbed to precarious heights to play the part of gaffer, pouring in slow and steady breaths into the blowpipe and then adjust the form of the gather with steady rotation of the pipe. The smoke rose from the vents as the molten glob contorted into its new shape, keeping her warm on a cold fall day, and giving her family another trinket to hock.

Glass didn't make for comfortable living conditions in already small, cramped surroundings, and the lack of money left little room for anything but essentials. The sound of clinking glass would keep her up at night whenever winds found their way inside, and if anything broke the shards would fill her home and cut her feet. Still, it was home, and it was a way to make a living, if even a meager one.

But on Anima, even the poor were robbed by the interminable legions of bandits and petty thieves roaming the continent. The shunned family living on the outskirts were a prime target for thievery, and even the small profits made from glassware were enough to buy lodgings and a meal, and criminals rarely had need to think much beyond that.

And when the good products they'd prepared for sale were stolen in the night, they lost even their meager earnings, and had nothing for food, and would have to venture deep into the forests away from their village and find provisions and kindling in Grimm-infested woods. The other townspeople offered no help, and she was left to tend their home alone while her parents struggled to find the means to survive.

She was just a child. What could she do in the face of bandits –even when those bandits were children barely older than she was- but crumble at their strike and watch as they took everything from her? What could she do but lick her wounds and hope that her parents would return and they'd have enough to live another day? Even if she wanted to fight them and put a stop to their misdeeds, how could she?

When she stepped outside her home, she found a witness observing the actions of the thieves, turning their eyes to the greater bounties within the town's sanctum, where the communal fires of the blacksmith's forge spread to multiple houses. The witness was adorned in a long robe and she could make out no features; no face, no hands, she wasn't even sure there were feet at the bottom of his cloak. Tall and thin, she could not say for certain then whether he was man or woman, though she would soon know. The witness observed the bandits pillaging without concern or comment, until turning attention to her.

"Small and weak," he observed of her in a low, wheezing whisper, "I know what it is to be small and weak; to covet." He knelt down and drew very close, but even right beside her she could not pierce the darkness in his hood. "Do you covet, child?"

She tried to answer, but her speech was marred by her wounds. She _did_ covet: warmth, food, wealth, security… all that she had seen but had been out of her reach. Yet she knew she shouldn't reveal this to a stranger, especially not one so callous as to stand aside and watch the suffering of others and do nothing.

"Of course you do," he continued, answering himself. "It is what I instilled in you, to hunger and seek and always want. And because this remnant is not enough, you will never satisfy that impulse. Truly, a sight to behold."

She had met unusual people in witnessing her father's sale of fine glass. Yet this cloaked man spoke as though he were truly mad. Perhaps he was. But then, he may have been eccentric enough to make such claims and still avoid bloodying his hands like the bandits.

She should flee back inside; there was no change she could effect. What good would it do for a child to run into a fiery pillage? Even if she wanted to help, even if she tried, she would just be caught in the conflagration. Yet she could not turn away; she watched the raging fire just as the cloaked man did.

And this instilled in him curiosity. "Do you like fire, child?"

She liked warmth.

He reached down with one cloaked arm, taking hold of her small wrist straight through the cloth. She tried to retract from his grasp, but he did not release her. He leaned down, his hood over the top of her head as he whispered in her ear. "Oh, I see… I see what you can be. I see it all too clearly."

She looked up at him to try and evoke pity; to convey her desperate attempt to flee. Behind his hood she saw his eyes… pools of inky black against flesh of pale white. A dead thing walking upright like a man.

"Hide in your home child, and stay near the flames," he told her. "The Grimm will not touch you."

The Grimm?

She saw flashes of red out in the woods further on the outskirts. The Grimm, drawn by the outpouring of negative energy from the raid and the devastation, slowly began their approach, to destroy bandits and villagers alike. All were their prey.

All save her, who ran inside her tiny home and stayed close to the fire, huddling alone and waiting, as monsters born from nightmares marched outside, their growls and their footsteps passing outside her door, while the cloaked man watched without concern, as though he had nothing to fear from the terrifying monsters.

She turned her attention to the flames, watching them dance… covering her ears to block out the sounds of death and destruction, knowing not when it would end, and whether she would return to even her meager life. She clung to the hope of remaining poor and cold in her hovel, if only so she would be alive.

The fire lasted through the entire struggle, and still burned when she emerged. She walked over to the still-smoldering ruins, amidst the scattered fall leaves and cinders left in the wake of the bandits and the Grimm. The dead littered the ground, villagers and bandits alike…

…and her parents, at the town center with so many others. Even shunned and abandoned by their peers, they had come to defend their village from attack. And for their selflessness, they died, leaving her alone with the cinders and fall leaves.

She sat down beside them, hoping they might wake, but knowing better, knowing that they were gone, and she was alone. Before, she had very little. Now she had nothing. Because her parents had tried to help those who never lifted a finger to aid them. Because someone thought her small and weak and pitied her enough to spare her.

What was the point in coming to the aid of those who cared nothing for you? What was the point in living if you could only do so by huddling in a corner and waiting for danger to pass?

She was small and weak, yes, but she didn't have to remain so. She didn't have to meet the same ignominious end as her parents or the others in the village who'd barely tolerated her or the bandits who'd pushed her around. She wouldn't grow to be like any of them and would find a different fate for herself; a _better_ fate.

So that girl lay down beside her parents and died with them, with the last fleeting affection for that life she had. And from the ashes of her home a new woman rose; not a weak little girl, but a new, stronger life, rising up from the mess of cinders and fall leaves.

* * *

Orphans littered Anima, and without any other way to support themselves, they stole whatever they could. If they were lucky, they were taken in by more experienced criminals to groom them and help them excel at the craft. Or if they were like Cinder Fall, they used a skill from their past life to make their way.

Glass wasn't always an effective weapon, but it was easy to disguise as utilitarian. People never tended to look much further than the surface, and as a result missed the obvious dangers lying beneath it. Glassware was beautiful and evocative. Broken glass was a deadly weapon. And being able to make cheap and effective weaponry certainly helped one excel as a criminal. When not performing the deeds herself, she could return to her roots and hock her wares, but to a more appreciative clientele. She had a hearth not like her father's, grander and more comfortable, with a loft and a warm bed to return to when her work was done.

And it eased her tension to craft. She suffered from terrible aches in her hands, and stoking flames alleviated her pain. One particular night, however, she struggled to find relief, and made one weapon after another, trying to find the creation that would satisfy her, when a visitor stood at her door, adorned in a black cloak.

Unlike the witness, this one allowed flesh to show: sickly, pale white arms encircled by black tendrils. Her hood failed to conceal long strands of hair poking off the back of her head and protruding into the cloth. Cinder saw a flash of red under her hood, like the eyes of a Grimm.

"Curious…" the woman observed.

Cinder turned her attention from her hearth. She was not a child afraid of strangers any longer. "Who are you?"

The cloaked woman took a moment before she replied. "So this is the little ember the Grimm chose to ignore. How rare it is to see one the darkness has blessed."

Cinder didn't understand it then, but the woman demonstrated knowledge she should not have; knowledge Cinder had never shared. "I'll ask you again: who are you?"

"Another, like you," the woman explained. "One recognized by the god of darkness and chosen by fate." She threw back her hood, revealing her bloody red eyes. "What was his gift to you, child?"

Cinder didn't care to answer questions, and this back and forth was only exacerbating her frustrations. "If you won't tell me who you are, then what do you want?"

The woman stepped further inside and Cinder drew back. She wasn't sure where to attack a pale creature like this, but she would find a spot, and killing this intruder might go some way to offering relief.

"Ah, I hear it roaring within you," the woman observed, sounding pleased. "He gave you fire. One of his original talents was to burn the life away and make the world clean."

"Gave me-?"

The woman moved so quickly she seemed to vanish from Cinder's door and reappear at her side, taking hold of each of Cinder's wrists in her long fingers, scratching the girl with her long fingernails. "There it is," she whispered.

Cinder felt something well within her, felt the aching pain spike outwards… and then flames erupted from her hands, blasting out her door and into the empty air. Cinder was so stunned she tumbled backwards, falling to the floor and looking on at the lingering wisps of smoke in astonishment.

The cloaked woman nodded in approval. "You see? You truly _are_ blessed, child."

Cinder looked down at her hands, watching them tremble in her astonishment. She looked up at the cloaked woman, then down at her hands, before slowly returning to her feet. The ache she'd felt moments earlier had been alleviated… and she could feel it, slowly burning under her skin and rushing through her blood.

She flexed her fingers, opening and closing her palm, watching small flicks of orange light dance on the surface of her hand. She pointed her hand at her hearth, pulling the licks of flame lining the kindling to her hands, pouring them together into a sphere between her fingers. She launched it out through her door, subtly directing the motion, _feeling_ the fire lance outwards as though she were stretching her own arm. She had created fire, without the aid of kindling or through manipulation of Dust. What she had done was… it shouldn't have been possible. Yet the power was hers', to control one of the elements that built the world.

"In time, you will learn how to use all that has been bestowed upon you," the woman continued. "Once you have decided on your purpose."

The woman stood behind Cinder, raising her hands on either side of the girl's head. "What do you want, child?"

She saw each thought through the back of her head, as Cinder realized at last what she was being offered, and for perhaps the first time, truly thought about what she wished to do and where she wished to go.

"I want…"

To survive? No, that she could do on her own. At that, she exceled.

"I want…"

Wealth? No, Lien was only as valuable as what you could trade it for, and the value of items was never consistent. What was money to a thief but a means to an end?

"I want…"

She remembered that day, when the god of darkness had spoken to her in his pained whisper, and she'd run and hidden herself. Remembered how she'd been small and weak, and survived thanks to some twisted sense of mercy.

"I want to be strong."

She thought of the bandits, who'd seemed so confident as they towered over her. She remembered the joy they projected, only to lose it and show the cowardice they had buried in the face of a greater evil than themselves.

"I want to be feared."

She felt the fire raging below the surface. She opened her hands again, feeling the flames rising up, right through her skin.

"I want to be powerful."

She felt the heat of the glass shards in her hearth. She called them to dance on her palms, to be reformed in the flames she conjured. Was this her Semblance? Had she been blessed by fate? Or by the hand of a god? In either event, she possessed something incredible. Something that made _her_ incredible in turn.

The woman smiled at Cinder's back. "That, child, is something I can help you with."

* * *

The first time Cinder took a life came in service to her new mistress. It hadn't been intentional; she'd had an outburst of frustration and unleashed the weight of her power on a hapless fool in her way. Cinder had difficulty completing her task, then trouble sleeping. Her mistress told her to put those doubts aside, and that many more would die in pursuit of power. Cinder said she understood, but at the time, those were just lies meant to appease her teacher.

The second and third times left her troubled, but noticeably less so. She was able to rationalize her actions as necessary. Then expedient. Then… by the fourth or the fifth, she no longer offered a reason. They impeded her. They irked her. They… it didn't matter what they did. _They_ didn't matter. _They_ weren't meant for greatness like she was.

She wanted to be respected, to never again fear her fellow person, but had not intended to kill them… at least, not many. She'd envisioned killing some great general or some wizened old academy headmaster in pursuing the plan; some necessary task where she would best an adversary on the battlefield.

But death was not glorious, and at times, not even purposeful. Death was what she dealt, because that was what fire was good for. And her mistress taught her to expand her abilities, to combine her glass making skills and her Semblance and augment her powers with Dust. Before she'd been a capable criminal, and under this new tutelage she became a feared and deadly assassin.

Family, hearth, home… all outliers in a greater pool of experience. A distant memory of a girl who died long ago. Her no longer.

The mission was what mattered now. And what she'd become would be worth all the death it took to reach it. It wouldn't matter how she was stained in blood and ash once she cleaned herself with the glory she'd been promised.

She didn't have trouble concentrating. She slept through the night. She grew stronger all the time, and the dead were forgotten, as they should've been.

The plan continued, and Cinder gathered allies of her own, joining in the plan to find their own glory and place in the future that promised them power.

And then, at last, she knew it had all been worth it, when she drew upon the powers of Amber, the Fall Maiden… when she felt the fire within her grow, and knew that there was more she could acquire, and her resolve was strengthened.

Greatness had its cost. And Cinder would be great, whatever it would cost.

* * *

Cinder glanced over at the torch on the wall opposite their cell. If the guard had listened in at all, he didn't seem to be enraptured by her narrative. She'd been careful not to divulge anything about Salem or her castle or the relics, focusing solely on personal power and the Fall Maiden. Her intention hadn't been to reveal every little detail… merely to break Jaune Arc of his resolve, to remind him how far he had to fall to be like her.

At last he would reveal his true nature and be repulsed. Whatever attraction he held to her surface, now that he'd seen what lay beneath it, he would abandon her and prove she'd been foolish to share –however briefly- the same desire as Pyrrha Nikos. He was still just a child after all. Now that he knew the true ending of the fairy tale, he would reject it.

Jaune was quiet for a long time, taking in all he'd heard. Cinder had spoken more in the past few minutes than she had in months, and only now was she feeling the pain of her wounds again. If she met his eye, perhaps he could repeat the process that had healed her…

Cinder tried not to shake her head; not give him any sign. His strange power to affect her, to free her of her pain… that was what had drawn her to him. It would be a shame to lose that benefit, but he had nothing else to offer her. Pyrrha Nikos still haunted her thoughts, and only because of that did she ever think otherwise.

"So you changed once before," Jaune noted. "And you could again, if you wanted."

On that tangent again… "Still trying to change me, Jaune Arc?"

"If you want to," Jaune offered. "You did it once. You became who you are now. You don't have to keep being that person."

"I am who I am," Cinder flatly replied.

At last he met her eye. "You didn't die back then, when the bandits and the Grimm destroyed your home. And you didn't forget who you were then- or you'd never have any reason to tell me."

Cinder scoffed. "This pointless babbling…"

"You can still be that person, who wanted to help," Jaune told her. "You can still be that person, who didn't want to kill. You could stop, and you could think, and you could do better. There'll never be a time in your life when it'd be too late to _stop_. There'll never be a day when you can't be a better person if you try to be. If you want to be."

So infuriatingly optimistic, and so… trite. "I guess you can't help being a fool."

"I told you before I'd help you if I could," Jaune reminded her. "And I think I can; I really think I can. Instead of wasting time fighting each other, we could find a way to work through it all. If you want to change… if you really want to, then I'll be there to guide you."

What was he on about now? Even after hearing all she said, he still thought she _wanted_ to change? He was still trying to remake her as he desired, rather than understanding her wish. He was a weak, stupid thing. He had no right to change what she was.

And yet…

Stained in blood and ash as she was, he still thought she could return to the life she had before? He still held onto hope for her, of all people? He wanted to _help_ her, after she murdered the woman he loved?

Childish idealism mixed with incomprehensible stupidity. Why would she want to return to being small and weak? If she reverted –if she _regressed_ \- she would never attain her goal. She'd never move forward.

Family, hearth, home… she may never have those things, but so what? She would never again be small and weak.

Cinder thought she should reiterate that last point. "Why would I want to be weak?"

"Why would you want to be strong if you have to be alone?!" Jaune countered, finally giving Cinder the emotional response she'd been seeking… but not the one she'd anticipated.

Cinder was at a loss for words. She'd intended to uplift a few others on her quest for power, to share in the bounty and reward her loyal helpers… but they were always to be subordinates. Valuable allies, possibly even people she respected, but never ones she trusted. Never friends. Never loved.

Jaune's voice was tainted by emotion, but he kept his tone even. "I don't care how weak you think I am; when I have my friends with me, we're stronger than we ever could be on our own. What we learned from each other, how we helped each other, what we found together and lost together… all the moments I've shared with Ren, with Nora, with Ruby and her team… with Pyrrha… I don't care if I could be as strong as you are or –or as strong as your 'mistress' is or whoever. No amount of power is worth what I'd have to give up."

Cinder concealed her confusion and composed herself enough to put up a strong front. "And you think I want the same as you? To have some group of friends to be forever tethered to?"

"I think you wanted me to run away with you," Jaune reminded her.

Reminding her of her weakness again. She wanted to burn him, if only she could force herself to do him harm, but still some instinct within her staid her hand. "You think you know me, Jaune Arc?"

"I think you want to be better than you are," Jaune answered. "I think you've convinced yourself that all you can be is a bad person, that you always have to follow the same path, that you have some predetermined result you can't avoid. But you can come back. You can stop. You can just _stop._ "

"Why do you have to change me?!" Cinder erupted, her voice laced with anger. "Why can't you accept who I am?!"

 _Why couldn't you just say those three words to me?!_

"Because if I don't believe that people can change, the world will always be the way it is, full of fear and violence and struggling," Jaune answered, cool and even, in stark contrast to Cinder's flaring temper. "And _everyone_ can change. _Everyone_ can be better. If they want to, they can try and they can find their way."

"As though you have any right to judge me," Cinder muttered ruefully. "You'd never have gotten on your path if you hadn't been willing to lie on your transcripts. You wouldn't have found those precious friends if you just tried your best- if you just _tried_ to be better, you'd have _failed_ and remained as you were before: _nothing_."

"You think you know me, Cinder?" Jaune inquired. He kept his tone even, but he'd been caught off guard. Cinder had only begun.

"How could I not?" Cinder interjected. "You told your dear Pyrrha Nikos _everything_ ; you leapt at the chance to talk on and on, about _nothing_! About your sisters, about your little farm, about your naïve hopes and dreams, about the family heritage you could _never_ hope to live up to, about your crush on that little girl in white… and you could _never_ realize she was putting up with all your nonsense because she had fallen in love with you!"

It had felt good to lash out. Until she'd gotten to the point where she'd felt resentment towards him for being unable to recognize her feelings.

Being unable to recognize the feelings of _Pyrrha Nikos_.

That hurt. It stung like a cold wind right in her chest that then somehow pulled down on her ribcage with steadily increasing weight. Because he could never see her, and kept wasting his thoughts on someone else.

Because he'd always think of Pyrrha Nikos, and not her…

"There were a lot of things I didn't see," Jaune acknowledged. "But I wasn't alone there."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Cinder snapped.

"Fire isn't just used for destruction," Jaune explained to her. "I remember seeing it take out a few of our crops, and my parents… were so happy when they saw it too."

Again he'd caught Cinder off guard with his strange pontification. "Why would-?"

"Fire destroys things, yes," Jaune continued. "But the ash it leaves behind makes fertilizer and compost that helps nurture soil and makes plants grow strong. We needed it sometimes, for old plants to burn and give nutrients to new ones."

She'd used fire to help her create, when she was a child. But unlike the farm boy, she'd used it to make inanimate glass. She'd used it to create things for people to covet, or tools with which to kill. The god of darkness had given it to her, to use it as he had used it, to destroy and lay to waste. Salem nurtured that goal, wanting her to burn all that others had built.

"Just because something destroys doesn't mean it can't also create," Jaune explained. "Just because you've done wrong before doesn't mean you have to keep doing more wrong later. You can do better. You can change for the better."

Again he returned to this tangent, trying to break down her will. Trying to change her. Trying to restrain her.

And yet…

She had to know.

"Even now, even after all I've said and done," Cinder began. "Even now, you would forgive me?"

"Even now," Jaune confirmed. "If that was what you really wanted. If you wanted to be better, I'd help you. I'd help anyone if they asked and there was something I could do."

He was such a fool.

And she loved him for it.

 _She_ loved him.

Yes, it made her weak. Yes, it made her foolish too. Just as Pyrrha Nikos had been. Just as Jaune Arc demonstrably was.

But much as she wanted to deny it, it was before her. Despite how cruel she'd been to him, despite everything she'd done and all that she'd revealed. That even though she was a thief, a murderer, a creature favored by a god who devoted himself to destruction and now the disciple of someone seeking to destroy all humanity had built, he would find it in him to forgive her. That he could move forward from that, and help her along her way too.

Pyrrha Nikos had felt drawn to Jaune immediately, both out of her own kind and compassionate nature, and from some unknown instinct, some sense of magnetism that instantly linked him to her. In bonding with him in the Emerald Forest, she'd felt that magnetism strengthen, and in living with him in close quarters, she'd become accustomed to feeling out with her Semblance and detecting his own magnetic field, feeling comfort in its presence. Now... now Cinder, without that gift, felt the same pull. Felt as though she were caught in the same field.

He would forgive her. He would accept her.

Cinder felt the fire subside. She felt a coolness under her eye, as a single tear fell from her amber orb.

He didn't hate her. He didn't fear her. He didn't… reject her, as she had held before. What she'd believed to be him imposing his world view on her had been an offering of help. One she couldn't recognize, because of how her view had been tainted, subsumed by darkness and fire.

Cinder understood it now, what Pyrrha Nikos had seen. Despite his clumsy, foolhardy nature, within him was an earnest spark of hope that refused to be extinguished. And something that refused to die in the face of all the pain and suffering the world brought to bear- how could that _not_ be powerful?

She'd never been in love. Save for a faint recollection from her childhood and the invading feelings of another woman, she'd never experienced it before. And yet here she was, in love with this weak, foolish boy.

Maybe he wouldn't love her as she was, but he could love her if she tried to be better. If she just didn't kill and destroy. If she just _stopped._

Jaune took note of the tear and leaned in to wipe it away. She reached up to take hold of his hand, holding it against her cheek and locking his gaze.

"Jaune," she whispered, staring deep into his eyes.

He recognized the look. Before he'd withdrawn from it, but now he couldn't look away.

She was drawn to him, to whatever within in him that gave him hope and now filled her with inspiration. He was drawn to her, for whatever girl she had been, that would've grown into the same beautiful woman and could be more than the killer she'd been molded into.

Some part of her wanted to take advantage of this opportunity, to mold him into a willing servant in her plans with her careful, practiced manipulation. But that voice was growing smaller and softer. _That_ was the outlier in her thoughts now, the distant memory of the girl she'd been before.

The girl she'd been before Jaune Arc believed she could be more.

Cinder pulled him closer, and without any further thought, kissed him.

For her, it was truly the first time. Whether Pyrrha Nikos was still drifting through her thoughts or not, it was _Cinder Fall_ -or whoever she was now, whatever new girl emerged from the ashes of her raging fire- who wished to kiss Jaune Arc, and this time, he hadn't pushed her away.

He kissed her back. And held her close.

Cinder heard the sound of movement as the guard outside moved about. She put the thought aside. All there was for her was this moment; for the first time kissing a man she had fallen in love with. And him kissing her back, with the same passion and fervor, the same fire as her.

They lost themselves in the moment. There was nothing but them, and their kiss.

Until the cell door clanged open, and they heard the sound of someone clearing their throat. The _familiar_ sound.

Cinder and Jaune broke from their embrace and turned their attention to the door.

Qrow Branwen stepped into the cell, holding his blade over his shoulder. Ruby Rose stood behind him, her hand over her mouth and her eyes wide. Nora and Ren were off to the left, standing over the unconscious form of a Mistralian guard. They seemed to have inverted roles: Ren looked astonished, and kept trying to say something, opening and closing his mouth as he rapidly reconsidered his course and Nora was –perhaps for the first time- at a loss for words.

Qrow had no such difficulty articulating himself. "We interrupting something?"


	8. The Hand of Fate

**Chapter Eight: The Hand of Fate**

In her chambers, Salem took a moment to consider her course. Something about Cinder's recent actions continued to draw her curiosity. The emergence of Pyrrha Nikos' soul within her wasn't an unprecedented circumstance, but it presented a dangerous possibility Salem had to explore before Cinder found out for herself.

Salem opened her hand, summoning the fragment of Aura she had extracted from within Cinder, the part of Pyrrha Nikos that she had been able to remove. An incomplete soul floated in her hand, and Salem began to draw it apart, pulling at the threads of life within the amorphous energy, weaving an image in the tapestry of the soul.

It might've been wise to rid herself of the excess, but Salem was not one to waste assets. And something in the brief glimpses she'd seen, of the memories Cinder had also experienced, had caught Salem's eye.

The memories were muddled and vague –the half formed flashes akin to a dream state- and there were clear signs of eidetic decay; how could there not be after the host had passed and the thoughts had clashed with a new and different mind? But slowly, with her practiced weaving, Salem saw it, in memories from a day when she reached out to help the boy she had fallen in love with, and helped him defeat a dangerous Grimm by reaching out with a magnetic field and helping him hoist his shield.

Salem very nearly lost her concentration. It took something incredible to break her focus, but something incredible had just briefly passed through the tapestry drawn in her hand.

That power… Pyrrha Nikos had a control over magnetism? That was her Semblance?

Semblance was itself a part of the Aura of its owner; Aura its fuel and lifeblood and Semblance its projection of the soul's unique nature into the world. And Pyrrha Nikos too had been blessed by the hand of fate with a power that should've ensured she was destined for greatness.

And Salem had thought to extract it from Cinder… if Cinder ever found a way to guide that Aura that had invaded her, to mingle it with her own…

No one had ever wielded two Semblances. But in extracting the maiden's powers, Cinder had gained a connection to older, more potent abilities. And she had done so by mingling her soul with Amber's, but suppressing and controlling it, eventually breaking down the old mind and simply absorbing the second gift. But now… now this third source of Aura within her…

Cinder could cast more than fire. With time, with practice, she would be able to wield other elements, as Amber had in life. And with time and practice, if Pyrrha Nikos' soul still endured within Cinder… the same principle could apply. She could eventually, with concerted effort, gain a second Semblance that affected another force of nature.

For the first time in years, Salem felt –however briefly- a twinge of fear. She had to bury the thought quickly, lest the Grimm have any reason to doubt her, to stop fearing her in turn, but what she realized had dire repercussions.

Pyrrha Nikos was still young when she'd passed, and despite her talent, she'd never learned the full extent of the power fate had blessed her with. She might very well have thought moving a few pieces of metal was gift enough.

She could shatter the world. She could make North become South. She could alter the balance of this remnant in ways she could've scarcely imagined.

And now, Cinder had that power, and had no idea it lay dormant within her, along with control over several _other_ forces of nature, and an already powerful Semblance.

If Salem could find a way to direct that power, she'd have no need for maidens or relics. That would be more than enough to break what little man had built. But if Cinder realized the extent of her powers beforehand, without Salem's guiding hand, she might think to challenge her mistress. And if Salem could not put down that rebellion quickly, and Cinder had time without Salem's watchful eye, she may well become powerful enough that even the darkness could not contain her.

The love of the boy Jaune Arc was keeping the flame of Pyrrha's soul alive. If Salem could simply extinguish that, as she had planned, then this could be averted. But in doing so, she could lose a potentially immense power that could accelerate her plans and bring them to fruition in a way even she had never envisioned.

She was broken from her thoughts by a faint knocking at her door. "Enter," Salem instructed, closing her hand around the tapestry of Aura.

The door to her chambers creaked open as Cinder's silver-haired subordinate stepped in. "I delivered her to the Doctor in Mistral, like you asked."

"Good," Salem confirmed. "That will be all."

He seemed inclined to say more, or ask her some question to satisfy his insipid curiosity. But brute though he was, the boy was smart enough to obey Salem. If she frightened _his_ mistress, he knew better than to draw her ire. He left without another word, leaving Salem to consider her course.

Did she risk allowing Cinder to find the truth, and reach a level of power like never before?

Or did she snuff out the lingering fragments of Pyrrha Nikos still buried within, and lose that opportunity forever?

* * *

Mercury didn't have far to travel from Salem's chambers before he found Emerald, looking quite displeased with him. "Where have you been?!"

Mercury was quiet for a moment, indulging himself at her expense, but only briefly. "I took Cinder back to Mistral. Boss lady knocked her out and then had me carry her on my back."

Emerald was beside herself. "Why? Why would you ever-"

"Haven't you realized how far we are out of our depth?" Mercury interjected. "We thought Cinder was all powerful- turns out she's not as special as she made herself seem. We were riding high, thought we were going to own the world, then we find out we're not even pawns… less even than that."

"And what, you think you should suck up to the new boss instead?" Emerald mocked.

"I think we don't have a lot of places to go," Mercury answered, "And Cinder's come down in the world. I want to survive, Em- that means I'm fighting for the strongest side."

Emerald understood his logic. His desire was her desire, and if so ordered by this mysterious –but clearly powerful- woman, Emerald might very well have betrayed her mistress too. Loyalty only went so far when the alliance was based on a strict hierarchy of power and usefulness.

Cinder had never treated them as her equals, even reminding Emerald not to grow too bold and forget her role in their faction. But to Cinder, at least the two of them were useful, trusted assets. To this Salem, she may have tolerated their presence, but they were markedly less powerful than her other subordinates. Eventually she might grow tired of the indulgence.

"Mercury," Emerald began, speaking tentatively. He took note of her hesitation and raised an eyebrow.

Their alliance was based on complementary skillsets, and not much else. Mercury was annoying and immature, but he was reliable and competently executed orders. Emerald valued that, even if she didn't like him all that much… but to the extent she trusted _anyone_ , she'd rather work with him than try her hand at making new friends with the rest of Salem's circle.

And Cinder… cruel and callous as she was, she _had_ kept Emerald safe and alive, and Emerald surmised that Cinder wouldn't simply sacrifice her when it was most convenient. And while it wasn't much of a bond, it was a better starting point than doing grunt work for more powerful and less scrupulous masters.

"We need to stick together –the three of us," Emerald told him. "Because there's no one else here we can trust."

"Oh, you trust me, now, Em?" Mercury asked with a smirk.

"Yes," Emerald answered. "Because if I don't, I'm dead. And if you don't trust me too, you'll be dead. Because we _are_ out of our depth, and if Cinder's out of the picture, what need will Salem and her fan club have for us?"

Mercury understood her argument. It wasn't in his nature to open up, but Emerald's affirmative answer –her gesture of trust- was more than anyone else would offer him. He didn't have anyone or anything else but her, and to a lesser extent, Cinder and the plan. He was still thinking like a mercenary, trying to sell his services where they might get repeat business… but at the same time overlooking the value of having someone he could count on to watch his back in the den of wolves he now found himself in.

"What do you want to know, Em?" Mercury finally asked.

"I want to know everything you know about what Salem had planned for Cinder," Emerald replied. "And then I want you to show me how we get there."

* * *

Cinder was grateful they had chosen the Mistralian boy Lie Ren to be her guard. It was a futile gesture to try and keep her under their watch, but for the moment at least, she'd been cooperating. Had she been put under the eye of Ruby Rose, Cinder may well have broken down and attacked her to quell her anger; even seeing her for a brief moment in her cell had reignited the firestorm Jaune had been able to suppress. And if Qrow Branwen had opted to be her jailer, she might not have been able to best him in her wounded state. Pyrrha Nikos had been fond of Lie Ren, and she admired his quiet reliability. Cinder recalled observing him in the Vytal Festival and saw him competently execute whatever role he was assigned, and suspected she'd be fond of him too were they not placed in opposition.

She wasn't surprised the others had grabbed hold of Jaune and sequestered him from her, no doubt convinced she'd used some terrible spell to seduce him and bend him to her will. Enjoyable though that thought was, it also left her away from him to feel the pain of her wounds and to be left with a raspy scratch of a voice, and away from him just when they'd reached an understanding.

She felt a strange sense of melancholy in being separate from him. In her brief periods of recollection, when she could see Pyrrha Nikos' memories drift through her mind's eye, she'd felt a similar emotion whenever she and Jaune were separated. The thought of him spending time alone with Nora didn't bother her, but the thought of him spending time alone with Ruby Rose incited feelings of terrible jealousy. Pyrrha Nikos had been unhappy with herself for succumbing to such petty failings, while Cinder reveled in the thoughts and let them mix with her own hatred for the silver-eyed girl.

They were off talking in the distance, their campfire a small flicker of orange against the dark of night, while she and Ren stood off in the woods away from the clearing where the others gathered. Qrow had been quick to incapacitate Cinder before they fled, so she had no recollection of how far they'd traveled, but now that they were back in the woods outside the kingdom's walls she was slowly regaining her bearings.

She looked up at Ren, who was determinedly avoiding her gaze. No doubt he was quite uncomfortable around her, given she'd killed his comrade and one of the only people he was close to. No one had taken the time to inquire about his feelings on the matter; everything just kept moving. Given he was never particularly forthcoming, no doubt even his closest friends thought he was simply handling the situation better than they were and was too strong to let the loss stagger him.

Cinder wondered if there were any more memories she could access, but aside from a general sense of trust and affection, Pyrrha had no strong, emotional recollection of Lie Ren. That gave Cinder no starting point… but she shook her head and disassociated herself of the idea. Her instinct had been to manipulate her captor with a gentle hand. It seemed away from Jaune Arc, she fell back on old habits.

She was eager to know what her captors were discussing, but not so eager she would sacrifice the progress she'd made. It was highly likely whatever good faith she'd earned from Jaune was the only thing keeping her alive.

* * *

Jaune shifted uncomfortably as he sat before the campfire. Nora and Ruby were occasionally glancing his way but quickly averted their gaze if he looked their way. Qrow had his attention fixated firmly on the blonde boy. Jaune wasn't sure which was worse. The long stretch of awkward silence from the underground prison to their refuge outside the city walls certainly hadn't helped.

"So, uh… how'd you guys manage to escape?" Jaune asked, trying to break the ice.

"Waited for a lull," Qrow replied matter-of-factly, "Once I got in and made my way to the cell, your boy Ren filled me in on the guards' patrol pattern. We made our way to you, but it seems you were busy."

Ruby stifled a cough. Jaune wasn't sure how to respond to that exactly, but his response was a bit more indignant than he intended: "What do you want me to say?"

"I dunno, kid," Qrow conceded. "Maybe that she tricked you, or she was trying to distract you, or you hit your head really hard when the guards threw you in. I'm open to suggestions."

Jaune glanced over at Ruby, who was still averting her eyes. Apparently she hadn't told Qrow what Jaune had confided in her. And now she was regretting it; whenever Jaune saw a glimpse of her eyes, he saw the unmistakable sign of disappointment lingering there.

"Look, there's uh… there's a whole _thing_ going on there you missed," Jaune answered. "But the long and short of it is she's…" Jaune stopped there, trying to form some justification for his actions and finding himself wanting.

What had Cinder done to merit defense, exactly? She seemed willing to accept his requests and move on from her lifetime of murder and theft, but she hadn't actually given him anything tangible to go on. She just put on the right tone and gave him the right look and he'd succumbed to his own desires for her.

Maybe he wanted to believe she would change. Here he was trying to make excuses for her when the best he could offer was that she _seemed_ amenable to his suggestion she do better. She hadn't actually bothered to give him an affirmation before she pulled him in. So what defense could he offer?

"Maybe you should start at the beginning," Qrow bluntly suggested.

"Uh, okay," Jaune agreed. Maybe if he was just honest and direct they'd understand his perspective. "She came to the inn to assassinate you, and then she kissed me out of the blue, then she told me she had Pyrrha's soul inside her… and um, well, I _thought_ that was a lie, but it turned out to be true, and she asked me to run away with her, and-" He made the conscious decision to edit out the fact he'd mentioned all this to Ruby; he figured he should dig only his own grave and no one else's. "-and when I told her I wouldn't go along without her agreeing to surrender to us she left, and then she wound up in the cell with me and… uh, then she told me about how she started working for that Salem woman and how she got her Semblance and-"

Jaune really had nowhere to go from there, short of mentioning that after that they opted to make out. But he figured they remembered that part. Qrow apparently heard his entire spiel, but Jaune couldn't blame him for taking time to process it all. Nora glanced over at Ruby behind Qrow's back, and Jaune suspected they'd moved a bit ahead of him with their reasoning.

"Okay, even _if_ your old buddy's floating around in her head or whatever," Qrow gently offered, "So what? She suddenly decide she's gonna stop working for Salem? She mentioned any new plans in between sucking your face?"

Ruby feigned having heard enough and stomped off, but as Nora's eyes followed her, Jaune suspected it was less at offense from her uncle's implications, and more concern that Ruby thought she was about to be found out.

"Look, kid, I'm sure you believe whatever song she's singing," Qrow told him, "but you really think you can trust her after all the crap she's pulled? Really think she's gonna change her ways for you?"

Jaune contemplated Qrow's words. "Trust might be too strong," he conceded, "but I _know_ now that some part of Pyrrha is within her, and it's helping her to do better. If I can find some way to help her with that, and make her a better person, then I have to try."

"Uh huh," Qrow grunted. "Well, we know your side of things; I'll see what she has to say on the matter. Also better make sure your buddy Ren isn't being put under any charms while I'm at it."

Nora quietly scoffed, but Qrow paid it no heed and left their campfire. Jaune sat across from her for several quiet, awkward seconds, the only sound was the crackle of wood in the flames.

Jaune turned his attention outwards, to where Ruby had wandered off. He definitely needed to talk to her, to try and explain all this, and demonstrate her trust in him hadn't been misplaced. Right now it seemed like _everybody_ thought he was in the wrong and if he was, he'd need his friends to help him with Cinder. And he'd like it if they wouldn't hate him for the choice he'd made.

But when he stepped past Nora on his way to Ruby, she took hold of his wrist. Even sitting down and holding on with a light grip, Jaune couldn't move; she'd taken hold and wouldn't let go. He turned to look at her, and when she looked up at him, her eyes were cold and focused. Ren had mentioned seeing this expression a few times; a rare occasion when Nora wasn't just serious, but determined to make her thoughts known.

But she took a measured approach when she firmly instructed him: "Tell me about Pyrrha."

* * *

Qrow watched Ruby head off into the woods as he moved towards Ren and Cinder's location. He discreetly motioned for Ren to follow after her; or at least he hoped the kid got the message through Qrow's expressive hand gestures. That done, Qrow turned his attention to Cinder, who sat on a fallen log between two trees and then glanced up at him, her single eye apprehensive.

"Blondie's really laying it on the line for you," Qrow noted. "And maybe you are turning over a new leaf, who knows? Just because somebody makes their living killing doesn't mean they're _all_ bad; I know that better than most. But then I remember how long you lay in wait and picked your spot, and I have a _real_ hard time believing you're giving up the life because of a blue-eyed blonde."

"Want… to talk to Jaune…" Cinder replied, her voice much less painful, but still difficult to maintain.

"Yeah, I'm sure you do," Qrow replied, indifferent. "But right now you're talking to me, so give me something to go on. Give me a good reason to believe you're on the level and not just stringing the kid along."

Cinder considered his words. It was certainly preferable to just fighting off the experienced huntsman, but she really wasn't in the mood to justify her actions. Not when she still wasn't sure how things with Jaune were going to progress; she didn't like to enter any situation unprepared.

It wasn't in her nature to be honest, but her feelings were real. If she demonstrated that, it might sway even this jaded man. "Hurts to talk…" Cinder explained. "Ask. I'll answer… yes or no."

"Oh, you have trouble talking?" Qrow inquired, looking entirely unmoved by her plight, "How'd you tell Jaune so much?"

Cinder would let him have that one. "Healed me. Something in his Aura."

Qrow nodded. "Alright, fair enough. I'll try it your way." He leaned over beside one of the trees, though deliberately kept his right hand on the hilt of his sword at his waist. "First things first: you still working for Salem?"

He didn't mince words. And he started with the hardest question to answer.

Was she? Salem had just traded her to Lionheart, but Watts had implied that was a simple test of her loyalty, if the entire plot hadn't been of his own orchestration. And while Cinder had suggested she and Jaune abandon the fight, she'd always been afraid of the possibility of Salem finding her and punishing her for her betrayal.

She couldn't wait too long. So, once again, she told the truth. "I don't know."

"Huh, based on the last guy, I thought she inspired _loyalty_ ," Qrow snarked. "Okay, okay. You being honest when you told the kid you had his girlfriend floating around in your head?"

Cinder narrowed her eye at his word choice and flatly answered: "Yes."

"And he really forgive you for killing her off?" Qrow asked.

"Said he would," Cinder answered defiantly.

"And maybe he will, he's an optimist," Qrow conceded, "but you? You're not. You and me; that's not the cloth we're cut from. We know too much about the world. We know better than to be optimistic."

Cinder maintained her gaze, trying to appear defiant. He wasn't wrong, but she had no intention of letting him see any hesitation or doubt. Her love was real, even if only days before she hadn't believed it possible. "Something about him," Cinder firmly replied, even in a pained whisper.

"Okay, okay," Qrow put up one hand, "I've heard enough about your love life. Let's get back to the important stuff. Where is Salem hiding?"

He was forcing the issue. Now, one way or another, Cinder would have to pick a side. Either she remained loyal to her mistress or she gave material aid to one of her enemies; possibly the biggest obstacle left.

And Salem would know. The darkness _always_ knew.

She wasn't sure what the next step was with Jaune. The wisest course was to flee now and try and regain his trust without the last eye to watch them. There was no reason to assume this drunk and a handful of first year students could beat one of the most powerful people in the world.

She thought of Jaune's willingness to forgive her and she'd felt the hatred subside, and been able to believe she could come back from her life of inflicting harm. She thought back to what Salem had advised, about how no one would love a ghost forever, and had been willing to forgive her that moment of weakness.

Cinder mulled her options, and opened her mouth to speak.

* * *

Watts hated meeting like this, but without the benefit of the CCT, he surmised this would have to be the new norm. After making the necessary excuses to pardon himself from Lionheart's guest quarters, Watts stepped outside the border of the kingdom, waiting outside the sight lines of the Mistralian army's patrol routes, and looked skyward for the sign.

Eventually he spotted a pair of red eyes in the night sky, as a Nevermore descended to meet him. As it drew closer Watts saw the tendrils of a Seer wrapped around its wings and imbedded through its black feathers and drilling into its flesh, the jellyfish-like creature sitting on the massive bird's back. Once the Nevermore landed, the Seer detached its tendrils from the bird's back and floated down to greet Watts.

The Seer reached up a single tendril. Watts knew he wouldn't enjoy this process, but rolled up his coat sleeve and willingly allowed the creature of Grimm to drive its appendage into his arm and under his skin.

Watts waited a few seconds as he tried to get used to the creature poking out of his arm, before he felt his perspective change, as he was pulled from the forests of Mistral to the meeting room in Salem's castle, where the queen sat in her crystal throne, a second Seer floating before her. The image was covered by a red filter, and Salem's every movement was muddled, as though viewed through ripples of water.

"Report, Doctor Watts," Salem instructed, from half a continent away.

"Cinder and the four Vale prisoners –including the silver-eyed girl- all escaped sometime in the last few hours," Watts explained, careful to add the relevant details and get a little dig in at his ostensible ally. "Professor Lionheart is understandably distraught; no doubt he thinks we intend to punish him for botching this operation."

Salem reached a hand to her chin and she was silent for several seconds while deep in thought. Watts wasn't enjoying the conversation with the Grimm poking out of his arm, but kept up appearances; he remained confident just in case Salem was considering blaming him for the debacle.

"Assure Lionheart he has not provoked my ire," Salem instructed. "Perhaps our show of good faith will convince him of the importance of relinquishing the relic to us, as he can't seem to depend on his own resources."

Watts nodded. "And what of Cinder, my lady? I presented your terms to her, but I somehow suspect she has a different plan in mind, with the evidence I have to go on."

Salem recognized his tone; once again he was trying to undermine and belittle Cinder before her mistress. Salem allowed him the indulgence. "You will leave Cinder to my judgment," Salem instructed. "Focus your efforts on Lionheart and establishing our foothold in Mistral."

Watts put aside his grievance and complied. "Very good."

Salem lazily waved her arm at the Seer beside her. A few moments passed before Watts felt himself pulled back to Mistral, and the Seer imbedded in him withdrew its tendril and broke the link with its peer in Salem's castle. Watts massaged the small wound it left, watching a few drops of his blood fall to the ground.

Cinder had –however indirectly- made him bleed. He would make a point to pay her back for that.

* * *

Jaune sat down with Nora beside the campfire and recounted what had happened over the past few days, again making a conscious choice to avoid including Ruby's knowledge of events. He talked about –in great, even embarrassing detail- all that he and Cinder had shared. But what Nora most wanted to hear about was Pyrrha, and Jaune detailed what memories Cinder had cited, from Jaune's stories about his home and his family to his pining over Weiss while Pyrrha quietly endured it for his sake.

"I know you believe her," Nora admitted, "I know it's not in you to tell a lie. But _I_ don't believe her. And even if she, somehow or other, has Pyrrha in her soul, it hasn't been enough to change her."

"But it will!" Jaune argued. "She was right there, about to find her way when you guys came in."

"She mention that in between make outs?" Nora asked in a decidedly deadpan manner.

The words hurt worse than Jaune expected. Not because Nora was being catty –she did that sometimes- but because of her tone. She wasn't mocking him. She wasn't angry with him. She was disappointed, just as Ruby had been, and her tone did everything to reveal that.

Jaune had felt he'd made progress a few hours ago, in offering understanding and forgiveness to an enemy, he was drawing her towards a better path. And his friends were disappointed in him. His best friends –at the moment the most important people in his life- had pretty consistent reactions. They didn't see whatever good he saw in Cinder, and they had trouble meeting his eye.

Perhaps they thought him shallow, or were hoping Cinder was simply manipulating him and he was under her spell rather than making the decision for himself. Was it so wrong to hope for the best?

"I don't know why things are like this," Jaune told her. "I wish things were simple; that we were all still back at Beacon and not having to worry about any of this. I wish we still had Pyrrha with us and that Cinder realized her mistake before we ever made it to this point. But _this_ is where we are now. This is what's happening. And if I don't try to change it, all that happens is things stay as they are- with us far from home, out in the woods because the guy we came to see tried to imprison us before we could tell him anything, and Salem just sending people to kill us in our sleep instead."

"Try to change it," Nora repeated, thinking on his words.

"Yeah," Jaune continued, gaining some confidence. "We didn't do well trying to fight them. Maybe if we show them… I don't know, friendship, forgiveness, understanding, whatever they never had before, then we can turn them off whatever path they're on."

"Sounds like a pretty noble sentiment," Nora agreed, before looking up at him, meeting his eye with that fierce, determined gaze. "So why do you have to kiss her?"

Jaune didn't have a good answer to that one. "Um…"

"You want to redeem her, help her change, fine, I support you in that," Nora told him. "You want to move on from what happened to Pyrrha, I don't agree with it, but I get it, I understand why you'd feel that way. _**But**_ … you want to _kiss_ the woman who _murdered_ our friend –someone who loved you- and that's when I don't support you. And I _want_ to support you. I want nothing more than to believe in you and follow you wherever you lead."

Nora's expression softened, and Jaune saw her clearly fighting back a tear on her left. "You are important to me; you and Ren are all I have. I don't want to be angry with you, I don't ever want to doubt you… and right now, that's all I'm feeling and I know it doesn't suit you. So why? Why is she affecting you like this? Or why are you _letting_ her affect you like this?"

Nora was cutting him deep now. At times he'd taken her friendship and support for granted, because she was so bubbly and upbeat. Just a few days before she'd offered him comfort and support when he'd been feeling the sting of that loss of Pyrrha, when just hours before _that_ she'd offered Ren her support in dealing with the demons of his past in Kuroyuri. Nora hadn't opened up about her feelings on Pyrrha's death, and now he felt incredibly guilty and thoughtless for not seeing it.

And even in trying to help Cinder, some of his actions had been motivated by base desires… a part of him that might've been endearing when he was chasing skirts at Beacon, but now distressed his friends who saw only a terrible character flaw.

Would he be able to forgive Cinder were she not so beautiful? Would he be as amenable to her attempts had she not kissed him and confessed her love for him?

Was he trying to help her or help himself?

Before Jaune could offer Nora any reassurance, Ren intervened, joining them at the campfire and searching frantically, glancing in every direction. "What is it, Ren?" Nora asked, immediately changing focus.

"Ruby," Ren explained. "She's gone."

* * *

Before Cinder had a chance to answer Qrow, the sound of Jaune and his two teammates running over drew his attention. He glanced their way with one eye, keeping the other on Cinder.

Ren was matter-of-fact. "We can't find Ruby."

Qrow immediately turned his attention to Cinder, moving both hands to pull at her collar. "You know anything about this?"

Cinder noted he abandoned his practiced defense when his emotion got the better of him. His concern for his precious niece left him vulnerable. Still, she could honestly answer: "No."

Qrow narrowed his eyes, then turned his attention to the others. "Spread out; no further than half a mile. We find her or some sign of her."

Cinder looked past him to Jaune, looking very concerned. She hated to see him so distraught, and the thought of him worrying about Ruby stirred in her a deep and potent jealousy.

Qrow glanced back at Cinder. "And you… don't for a moment think I've changed my mind on you, but I'll give you a chance here. Stay put. Show me some of that good faith blondie here thinks you're able to muster."

Cinder continued to look at Jaune, torn between sympathy for him and dislike of his affection for Ruby. Still, she managed to nod.

The four moved off in different directions, even Jaune, who cast Cinder a glance –a pained glance- before disappearing out into the woods. She wondered exactly what was going through his mind. She _used_ to know.

 _Pyrrha_ used to know.

She stared down at the dirt, weighing the painful possibilities. No doubt his friends had been advising him about her the whole time she'd been separated from him. Had they managed to turn him against her?

Was there any reason for her to wait for them to come back? Or was this gesture of trust going to end with them deciding she was too dangerous to give an opportunity to be redeemed?

She could understand making the practical choice. It was only recently she'd tried anything else.

The sound of footsteps drew Cinder's attention. Someone had clearly been waiting for the opportunity to find her alone. Watts? Salem? Jaune sneaking back? Qrow deciding to kill her without any young, innocent witnesses to complicate things?

Ruby Rose?

Cinder felt the fire rise up within her again as the silver-eyed girl stepped towards her, transforming her giant scythe from its compact form and driving its blade into the dirt. She locked Cinder's gaze and Cinder's hatred was amplified as she thought about the difference in their perspective; the two eyes staring at her single amber orb.

"I won't lose another friend to you," Ruby explained, quietly, meekly, but with an undercurrent of fierceness. She may have been out of her element, but she was determined to follow this course.

She was being protective of Jaune. That thought only stoked the fires rising in Cinder further.

The object of her hatred was standing right in front of her, challenging her to battle. Revenge was mere moments away. All she had to do was take it.

Cinder stood up, drawing flames to her right hand. She forgot how good it felt to release that tension; she'd been holding in her anger for so long now.

Jaune would hate her for killing this girl. She'd lose any chance to be forgiven. And then she would be right back where she started, only without any hope to ever change the person she was.

Revenge tasted so sweet on her lips. And the fire needed a target to be vented upon, to lay something to waste. And her hatred wished for nothing less.

Ruby rushed towards her, raising her scythe to swing it in a wide arc.

Cinder drew more fire to her hand and moved to meet her hated enemy, knowing that whatever happened next would change everything.


	9. Petty Failings

**Chapter Nine: Petty Failings**

Pyrrha looked on as Professor Goodwitch ran through the random selection for her sparring partner in the combat demonstration. Goodwitch liked putting Pyrrha in the ring, because she was a former multi-time regional champion, and being pitted against her made for a good stand-in of a randomized tournament selection process. The students participating in the Vytal Festival Tournament would need to be prepared for the worst, and Glynda seemed to think having them crushed by Pyrrha would prepare them for a serious challenge and have the added bonus of boosting their morale, knowing they'd have such a strong fighter representing their school. Pyrrha, of course, was happy to help… though a bit concerned that someone might catch on to her secret outside her circle of friends.

Not a concern for today, however, when Pyrrha saw the selection roll over a familiar young face, casting a little half-smile in her profile shot. "And her opponent will be Ruby Rose!"

Ruby… Pyrrha had been eager to have a sparring match with her, because she seemed like a talented fighter, especially with that cool trick she pulled off against the Nevermore. Ruby seemed quite exuberant stepping into the ring, unclasping Crescent Rose from her waist and unfolding her scythe. "This is gonna' be fun!" Ruby remarked with a confident smirk.

Pyrrha returned that enthusiasm with her own smile. "I promise I'll give you my all."

And she would, because she wanted to defeat this one. Not _hurt_ her –of course not, they were friends- but Pyrrha did want to best her in combat. She tried to tell herself it was because of her own pride, the respect she had for herself as a warrior and the natural outcome of combat between two respected fighters.

She also tried to convince herself it wasn't an excuse to vent her petty jealousy because every now and then Ruby and Jaune's close friendship irked her and she wanted to show her partner where he should focus his attention instead.

Glynda carefully read the various Aura meters on a computer elevated above the makeshift auditorium classroom, then signaled the start: "Begin."

Ruby rushed ahead, putting that speed advantage to good use. Pyrrha raised her shield and bashed forward, clashing against Ruby's scythe. Pyrrha skidded back along the floor from the force of Ruby's acceleration, but Ruby herself bounced hard off Pyrrha's defense and flew back a few feet further than her opponent had. An early advantage for the Mistral regional champion.

Ruby bounced along the wooden floor and quickly righted herself. She glanced down at her Scroll, measuring the amount of Aura lost from both herself and Pyrrha. Ruby had taken the worse hit, but made a solid dent. She smirked to herself and began bounding around, moving so quickly she seemed to be attacking from multiple directions.

Pyrrha saw through the veil with ease, sensing the ferrous surface of her scythe. When Ruby finally moved in to take a swing, Pyrrha slid gently beneath it, then folded herself back up and bashed the back of Ruby's head with her shield, again sending the younger girl tumbling.

Ruby immediately recovered and moved in again. Pyrrha had to be careful not to show off _too_ much… she really should've taken another hit so as not to arouse any suspicion from the onlookers, even if they were drowned out from RWBY and JNPR cheering their teammates on.

But she wanted to best Ruby as decisively as possible. Pyrrha wanted to leave the indentation of victory and make her win dominant and resounding. And she hated that she wanted that, but not so much she was trying to resist that impulse.

Ruby attacked again, but drew back before Pyrrha could counter her, and shifted her weapon into its compact rifle mode, quickly separating and moving to range to fire off a few shots. Pyrrha barely had time to raise her shield, and the refracting damage from the shells' impact dropped her Aura level a bit more.

That was enough indulgence. Now there was the finish.

It would be simplicity itself to rip Crescent Rose from Ruby's hand by calling the metal to Pyrrha's hand. But then everyone would know her secret, and worse, she might do the girl harm she had not merited, much as a tiny voice in the back of her head tried to assure her.

Pyrrha moved to pursue, and Ruby shifted Crescent Rose back to its scythe form, moving in to meet her. When she swung it out, Pyrrha gave it a gentle prod from afar, and from Ruby's perspective, she lost control of her heavy weapon's weight –ever so slightly- and swung wide, missing Pyrrha by a few inches. Pyrrha exploited Ruby's surprise and moved in with a flurry of strikes from her short spear, before finishing with another bash of her shield on the top of Ruby's head, flooring her and bringing her Aura below 25%.

Glynda intervened. "The round is over. The winner is Pyrrha Nikos!"

Pyrrha immediately glanced out at her teammates –at Jaune- to read their reactions. Ren was clapping in his polite, reserved way, while Nora was bouncing up and down beside him, eating up what little energy her partner had to offer. Jaune looked concerned, his eyes on Ruby on the ground.

It burned her up, to see clearly where his affection was directed. Ruby brought herself to a sitting position, massaging the top of her head. "Aw, man, I really thought I was getting up on you there-!"

Pyrrha composed herself. This jealousy- this resentment she couldn't manage to control was a character flaw that she should not indulge in. It wasn't Ruby's fault she was someone's friend. It wasn't Ruby's fault she happened to be a girl who hung out with a guy she liked.

Pyrrha reached down, offering a hand and putting on the necessary affectation, trying to make her smile more genuine than it felt. "You fought well," Pyrrha assured her.

Ruby took her hand and smirked, accepting what seemed to her an entirely genuine showing of sportsmanship and compassion from her friend.

Pyrrha tried to convince herself that if she never conveyed these petty failings to her friends, maybe in time they'd cease to exist, and she could just be happy for them without the burden of her own selfish wish.

* * *

When Ruby came to attack Cinder, she attacked with the same initial movement; a careful approach to feel out her adversary with a single horizontal slash. With a combination of Cinder's own instincts and what she recalled from her observation of the girl during the Vytal Festival and what fragments of Pyrrha's memories she had to work with, Cinder found her ideal counter. She drew upon the Dust shards weaved into her dress and the glass shards hidden on her person, forming a blade to clash against Ruby's scythe, pushing her aside and using the weight of Ruby's own weapon against her, making the small girl take a tumble.

Jaune was not here. There was no reason to restrain herself in this moment. No reason not to burn everything before her.

Cinder's left arm wasn't much use, and now the wounds Ruby Rose inflicted ached more than ever. Cinder wanted the silver-eyed girl to join her in that feeling, and share her perspective. Sharing the hurt would help alleviate the terrible sting of her defeat.

Cinder coated her glass blade with fire, encircling the weapon with bursts of flame rising from her fingertips, running along the hilt and then coating either flat of the blade. She moved to attack Ruby while she was grounded, striking quickly before the glass was warped by heat.

Ruby fired the rifle portion of her scythe, using the propulsion of the shot to move out of Cinder's path. That was a new one, at least to Cinder's multiple recollections. But though Ruby may have avoided one hit, she had not gone far enough to avoid another. Cinder melted the glass in her hand, breaking the sword down into multiple shards, before directing the passage of the heat, flinging dozens of sharp chunks of glass at her enemy. Ruby raised her scythe and swung it around to mitigate the damage, but she still received several direct hits, and already Cinder saw her Aura flicker.

She was so weak. How had she ever bested Cinder Fall, the Fall Maiden?

Her right hand shook with her rage. Her breath became increasingly ragged and her heart raced. She hadn't exerted herself very much, but her anger was contorting her within and without. The more Cinder saw Ruby, the more she reflected on her own defeat and the pain in her arm and eye.

She screamed out in frustration as she unleashed fire in a stream from her right hand, and Ruby changed tactics, dashing out of the way. Cinder followed after her, not letting the girl out of her sight as she blasted flames in pursuit, rendering the grass black and setting the forest alight.

This much devastation would lead her team back to them. Cinder had to finish this quickly.

Ruby transformed her weapon into its more compact form and began firing from afar, keeping Cinder at a distance. Cinder refocused her attention on the heat of each bullet racing towards her, burning the metal shards away before they could reach her.

Hunks of metal… did this girl really think she could harm her? That she could ever have defeated Cinder without the aid of some ridiculous power forgotten by history?

She felt the heat of each shot, rising off the surface of the bullet, each dropping ever so slightly mid-flight as they were affected by the pull of gravity. She was burning them away and Ruby Rose was never able to hit her, but this delaying tactic was buying her the time she needed for her allies to return.

When Cinder would lose her chance for revenge… lose her chance to punish this girl who seemed to draw Jaune's favor.

She remembered how she bested Ruby Rose that day in the sparring class, when she subtly redirected the movement of her scythe with a wave of her hand.

She had no more reason to be subtle.

Cinder raised her left hand. It wasn't much use holding a weapon, and it hurt terribly even to move, but she could still clench her fist.

And draw on the metal of the sniper rifle, and pull it right out of Ruby Rose's hand, pulling it across the grass and wood to Cinder's own hand.

Ruby looked on, stunned, caught completely off guard as Cinder took control of her weapon, then moved in, bashing the younger girl with her own weapon and driving her into the dirt and ash. Her Aura rushed along her body in a wave, the barrier collapsing from the point of impact.

Cinder looked down at her prey, still recovering from the pain and surprise of the attack. Revenge lay right in front of her, and all it would take now was a single motion.

Should Cinder use the girl's own rifle and shoot out her pretty silver eye? Summon a second blade and chop off her arm? They made for tempting options, whetting her appetite.

But that was not enough. She knew what she wanted. She knew what she _needed_.

Cinder's right hand was shaking with anticipation. She was aching there too, from the fire raging under her skin, demanding an outlet, begging her to open the floodgates and let all her power pour out and destroy her enemy. She was less than a second away from tasting the sweet fruit of revenge.

A moment flashed before her eyes, of Jaune patting her back after the match was over, congratulating her on the win. She swelled with pride, and managed to look away, feigning modesty as she did her best to hide a reddening cheek.

Pyrrha Nikos hated herself for feeling resentment towards Ruby, for being unable to come to grips with her weakness; her personal failing. Some day that jealousy might grow strong enough she did something to really hurt her, and to hurt his friends would be to hurt Jaune. And she would _never_ hurt Jaune. This jealousy was born of the darkness and negativity that existed within her, and embracing that flaw may have driven her to a victory in battle over the girl, but only by conquering that flaw and eventually discarding it would she move forward, and forge a stronger bond of friendship she truly wished to have with Ruby. She didn't have to beat Ruby for Jaune's favor. Jaune would be Ruby's friend regardless, and she had to come to terms with that, and find a different path to him welcoming her into his heart.

Cinder wanted nothing to do with Ruby Rose, but she found resonance with Pyrrha's wish not to do Jaune harm. Once again, their souls found common purpose, and her thoughts were thus less discordant. The only thing holding her back now was her own flaw; her own petty drive for revenge.

Her breathing was staggered, and her hand shaking violently. Flames were rising from her fingertips, as a very powerful voice within her begged her to finish what she had begun, and kill this girl once and for all.

Jaune would never forgive her for killing two people he cared about. Cinder would've made this attempt at redemption for nothing. And if she crossed that line, she would forever remain alone, enslaved to her own hate.

It hurt her not to unleash her power. The pain in her wounds ached worse than ever, but she focused on the memories of the sparring class, and the memories of her time with Jaune in the cell, and lowered her hand, letting the flames rise in tiny wisps, disappearing in the air.

Cinder tossed the heavy sniper rifle back to Ruby and turned away. She could not bear to look at the girl any longer, because the deep, powerful hatred was still simmering, and she would do all she could not to be tempted.

Cinder lowered herself to her knees in the scorched dirt, raising her right hand and placing it behind her head, pressed to her trimmed hair. She closed her eye and lowered her head, waiting for the others to return, hoping this sign of supplication might show them the effort she had made.

She heard Ruby Rose stand up behind her. She heard her collect her weapon, and briefly wondered if this teenager was about to kill her while her back was turned. Had the young silver-eyed warrior learned ruthlessness in the time since Beacon fell?

Cinder didn't have to learn the answer, because her friends rejoined the fray moments later, with Ren and Nora landing in front of her from somewhere in the woods, leveling their weapons down at Cinder's head. Qrow moved to his niece's side, and Cinder heard him ask: "Are you all right? What happened?"

Ruby mumbled something Cinder couldn't make out. Qrow gently prodded her away, leaving Cinder kneeling in the dirt before Nora and Ren, neither of whom had moved their weapons an inch, even as their captive offered no resistance.

For what seemed an eternity, Cinder contemplated what her fate would be. Ruby Rose had been the very vision of innocence when they'd last encountered each other, but time and experience had a way of making one more pragmatic. Loss steeled the heart even more so, and Cinder assumed that, even without resorting to lying, Ruby could convince her uncle that Cinder wasn't worth sparing because of their brief clash of fire and metal.

If this was the end, Cinder wished she could see Jaune again, if only for a brief moment, so she'd stop feeling the terrible aches.

"Go on you two," came Qrow's voice as he rejoined them, and Nora and Ren relaxed their grip, lowering their weapons. Cinder opened her eye and looked up, as Qrow stepped over, looking very irritated.

For several seconds he said nothing. Nora and Ren seemed interested in seeing what he'd do next, but eventually they returned to their campsite instead, leaving Qrow to pace before Cinder, muttering indignantly to himself.

When he finally met her eye again, he remarked: "Okay. Let's keep talking."

* * *

Jaune hadn't covered as much ground as the others, but they _still_ managed to beat him back when they saw the fire. Qrow told him to return to camp and not engage with Cinder, and Jaune had reluctantly complied. He didn't know what had happened, he didn't want to reach the obvious conclusion, but he also wanted his friends to see he hadn't been put under her control. So he waited for a few agonizing minutes while his friends moved towards a distant fire and he sat on the sidelines, worrying about what had happened and _everyone_ who might've been involved.

When he saw Ruby walk in, he immediately jumped up and ran over to her. He moved to place a hand on her shoulder, but stopped himself in mid-motion, his hand awkwardly extended for a few seconds before he changed tactics. "Are you all right?"

Ruby averted her eyes. He hated to see that, to know she was still disappointed in him… until he looked a little closer, and saw a different pain in her silver eyes. She was disappointed, yes, but not in him. She was angry with herself, as she had been at Kuroyuri and she blamed herself for dragging her friends into such a dangerous and unpredictable situation.

Had she… had Ruby been the one to provoke Cinder?

"What happened?" Jaune asked, trying to bring out as much of his genuine concern for Ruby and as little of his genuine concern for Cinder as possible.

Ruby was quiet for several seconds, before finally managing to meet Jaune's eye. "She used Pyrrha's Semblance, Jaune," Ruby explained, focusing on the important detail.

Jaune wasn't sure what he'd expected to hear. He thought hearing Cinder had lashed out and tried to kill Ruby might've been easier to comprehend. It'd certainly be less surprising.

Nora and Ren moved in to join them. Nora raised a hand to cover her mouth.

"Then it is true," Ren observed in a quiet monotone.

Jaune looked at each of his friends in turn, thinking he should reassure them, remind them that he'd been deserving of their trust all along, and that Cinder's attempts to better herself were sincere, and then remind them all that he didn't begrudge them for their doubt, knowing how they were only concerned and looking out for their friend.

Instead he was paralyzed by Ruby's revelation. Pyrrha had an extraordinarily powerful Semblance. Cinder had a similarly powerful Semblance, and all the powers of the Fall Maiden imbedded within her.

It may have been the confirmation of Pyrrha's presence in Cinder's soul his friends had needed to believe Jaune, but it also made for a grim reminder of her death. Intentionally or not, it felt to him as though Cinder had _taken_ something from Pyrrha, and if there was one thing that might derail her attempts to return to the light, it was the promise –and realization- of great power.

Jaune had to speak to Cinder; to head this off and focus on what she had done right. To focus on the fact she had remained behind and not killed Ruby when she was alone and vulnerable.

He couldn't move. He couldn't say anything. He was a child, trapped by indecision, unable to form the words that would convince Cinder that she had reinforced his belief in her redemption.

Instead, he thought of that moment, at the base of Beacon tower, when Pyrrha interrupted his attempt to dissuade her from rushing into battle, and she finally summoned the courage to kiss him for the first time, then used her Semblance to push him inside his own locker and send him away, putting him at a safe distance while she rushed ahead to do battle with that dangerous woman… that dangerous woman who now held what few pieces of Pyrrha the world had left, including the power that had made Pyrrha so extraordinary.

Soon that was all he could think of.

* * *

Cinder, now standing up once again, waved her hand to draw the flames in the tree line back to her, snuffing them out in the travel time through the air. Qrow watched as she undid some of the damage, and spared a few more trees from catching any spreading flames.

Qrow remained silent for a few moments before refocusing his attention. "Alright, I'll try it your way. Simple yes or no. You ready?"

Cinder nodded.

"Ruby says you had her dead to rights and didn't kill her. That true?"

Cinder hated even to think back on that moment. It made the fire under her skin rage outwards, slamming against the wall of her flesh. But she reluctantly acknowledged it. "Yes."

"Blondie boy says you want to turn over a new leaf. That true?"

"Yes," Cinder answered without hesitation. She was surprised by how quickly the word left her mouth.

Qrow looked contemplative. Or possibly like he had a bad headache. Quite likely both.

"We need to find somewhere we can hunker down," Qrow noted. "Do you know a place in the vicinity we can lay low?"

She knew more than one, but no need to venture too far. "Yes."

Again Qrow contemplated, then nodded. "Alright. Lead the way for us."

Cinder had barely taken two steps towards the campsite before she felt his hand clasp her left shoulder, sending a jolt of pain down her injured arm. "Don't mistake this for anything more than it is- this is me being nicer than I should be, and _only_ because you were smart enough not to kill my niece tonight. Don't confuse that with trust. Don't believe it's just forgive and forget."

"Never," Cinder agreed, not allowing herself to betray even a wince of pain to him.

"And sooner or later, I'm gonna' ask about Salem again," Qrow promised. "I'll give you a little time –not much, but a little- so you can decide for sure whether you can take that step. Just know that day is coming and coming _soon_."

Cinder met his eye and nodded. Qrow released his grip and walked past her towards the campsite.

So far, she'd ridden the fence. So far she hadn't crossed the line past where Salem would understand or forgive. But that moment was on the horizon now.

A worry for tomorrow. Tonight there was something more important on her mind.

She followed Qrow to the campfire, and the other four instantly took notice of her. Ruby Rose immediately averted her gaze. Lie Ren kept his attention fixed on her, ready to enter combat at any moment. Nora Valkyrie looked on with hateful resentment; a look that did not suit her at all, but one she maintained, with fierceness matched only by the burning camp fire.

Jaune looked confused and demoralized, but still the sight of him uplifted Cinder's spirits and dulled the ache of her wounds. Standing beside him, moving closer to him… it brought her more warmth than the campfire. She felt it once more, the pull of his magnetic field, and its energies mingling with her own.

No doubt his friends had whispered in his ear about her, trying to turn Jaune against her, to forget the kindness that had drawn her out of the darkness. Again Cinder focused on the recollection she had of Pyrrha Nikos, of how she tried to overcome her character flaw and accept that there would be others in Jaune's life he would care for, and much as she might like to have him entirely to herself, Cinder would accept the presence of these doubters. So long as she had Jaune, she could bury even the greatest hatred.

After all, she had stolen Ruby Rose's weapon and had the girl at her mercy and been able to-

Able to steal Ruby's weapon…

Like she had before. Like _Pyrrha_ had deliberately avoided in their sparring match by moving it a few inches rather than rip it from her hands.

She extended her left hand, ever so slightly, feeling the magnetic field radiating off of Jaune, feeling his bioelectricity pulse outwards and refract the waves rising from his flesh.

She remembered when Emerald informed her in the dorms, then when she witnessed it being unleashed on the poor robot girl from Atlas, and then when Cinder had battled against the power personally, and been grateful 'the invincible girl' had been too young and inexperienced to realize the full weight of her unique talent.

And now it was in Cinder's hand.

The voice she had ignored, the voice hidden deep in the well of the flames within her, gave a gentle laugh. Where before, in Jaune's presence the fires had calmed, now they flared, however briefly, as her mind raced with possibility.

The gift of the dark god, the powers of the Fall Maiden, and control over a fundamental force of the universe… all of it, at her command.

She tried not to think of it. She tried to focus on Jaune, even as he remained distant. His lack of response didn't make taking her mind off things any easier.

Instead she wondered just how powerful she had become.

And that voice at the base of the flames told her that she could easily find out… if she wished to.

And it was getting harder for her to ignore that voice.


	10. Silence

**Chapter Ten: Silence**

Mistral's architecture scaled upwards, with its grandest buildings and most affluent citizens positioned at the top of the mountain overlooking the less fortunate. The further you descended from the top, the danker and seedier it became, until you found only the poor and downtrodden, or the greedy and opportunistic. Without soldiers actively policing the bottom rungs, Cinder led them in and directed the groups to places they could acquire supplies or stay off the books with the right amount of Lien and a willingness to accept substandard living conditions.

Qrow had suggested he separate from the others, dividing them into three teams. Ruby, Nora, and Ren had been reticent at allowing Jaune and Cinder to be alone together, but Qrow suspected allowing her the indulgence would be the best way to rein Cinder in and keep her pacified. And Qrow himself needed to get away from the group for a bit in case his Semblance decided to exert itself, and he didn't want any inexplicable signs of bad fortune to spook Cinder while they maintained their tentative alliance.

And as an added bonus, it meant he could get a drink.

After finding just the right seedy dive, Qrow ordered some of the cheap stuff and nursed it. He may have just recovered from a poisoning, but he was eager to return to his poison of choice, and also maybe gather a bit of intel from the locals while he was at it. If nothing else he wanted to process how to work with a dangerous woman who may or may not have still been working for Salem, and he tended to think better two drinks after the fact.

A seedy bar was just the sort of place a young man should avoid, but it was right where he needed to be, according to the voice in his head. He'd been uncomfortable trying to make his way through the slums at the bottom of the kingdom, poking his head into shady establishments, but at long last he'd found the man he was looking for. He was still cautious in his approach, even if the voice in his head assured him there was no danger from the drunk with the sword on his back.

Qrow quickly discerned his presence and glanced back, finding a brunette farm boy with youthful freckles and bright green eyes, looking a bit disheveled in his loose slacks and dirt-stained white shirt. Qrow leaned back in his seat and remarked: "You know, I don't think they allow kids in here, pipsqueak."

The boy averted his eyes. "Shut up, I'm getting there…" When he managed to look at Qrow again, he spoke again, a little more cautiously: "Um, I'm supposed to tell you: I'd… like my cane back?"

Qrow's eyes widened, as he realized what had happened. He knew this had been coming, but had no idea who'd be selected for the binding. And the news couldn't have come at a better time.

Qrow nodded a few times more than he needed to and slipped up off his seat, reaching to unclasp the head of the cane from his belt, giving it one last look before he surrendered it to his old teacher. "It's good to see you again, Oz."

He tossed the trinket to the boy, who easily caught it with one orange glove. Upon touching his hand, the staff extended from the head of the cane. The boy took a moment to examine his new possession before looking up at Qrow again.

"I'm sure this isn't what you were expecting to hear today," Qrow allowed, "but have I got a story to tell you…"

* * *

Jaune had been quiet since he and Cinder had reunited. He'd gone along with her at her suggestion with nothing but a passive nod. He hadn't asked any questions or offered any opinions of his own. He just followed after her as she led him through the backstreets and slums of Mistral's underbelly, and he was using his not-inconsiderable brawn to cart around the food and medicine they'd been collecting from less-than-savory merchants.

Cinder had never thought silence could be so loud. Her –Pyrrha's- memories of Jaune were strongest when there was a strong emotional investment, and she always felt deep concern when Jaune was quiet or deep in thought, because it was so out of character for him. Whatever his friends had discussed with him (which was almost certainly about Cinder and whatever relationship he had with her) had clearly affected him deeply.

Each time Cinder tried to speak she found herself stopping before she could say a word. It wasn't in her nature to hold a long conversation, even before she'd been maimed. She'd never really held a conversation with anyone she thought of as an equal, and honestly wasn't sure how to have a talk. How did one transition from one topic to another? What ideas would be exchanged when one talked without the talking serving a purpose? Cinder would much rather Jaune do the talking. Until today, he'd been able to compose his thoughts, even inelegantly. Now his silence was deafening, and Cinder wondered what thoughts raced through his mind and why he couldn't articulate them.

Though she wasn't sure what there was for _her_ to say to him either. Their heart to heart in Lionheart's dungeon may have led them to a better understanding of each other, but it hadn't been words they wanted to exchange. They'd been driven by raw emotion, by the wish to embrace one another. The more Cinder pictured remaining with him, the more she wondered what thoughts they might share, what things they might do together outside the simple, unexpected moments of passion.

Cinder hadn't had time for many hobbies, and from what she could discern from Pyrrha's recollections, she wouldn't share with many of Jaune's quirks and his fondness for playing board games about compost or reading superhero comic books. Cinder might dream of sharing hearth and home with Jaune, but she was having difficulty picturing what they'd do together to fill the time. They could only kiss so often.

Cinder didn't want to have these thoughts weighing on her, but they were persistent in nagging her. The more she thought about remaining with Jaune, the stranger a prospect it seemed. And the more she wondered what there was for them to share, or where things would go, and if the love that burned so fiercely within her might ever fade.

All fires did, eventually.

And of course, she was troubled by the revelation of having obtained a second Semblance. It made her exponentially more powerful, but Cinder knew it was not hers'. If ever the Aura of Pyrrha Nikos lingering within her were to fade, so too would this ability to extend her soul. And if she were to use and demonstrate this power, it would be a consistent reminder to Jaune that Pyrrha's killer now held the thing that had made Pyrrha special, and he was trying to share companionship with that murderer.

But it was power that made her exceptional, even more so than she had been. For all the powers of the Fall Maiden, for all her skill in wielding Dust, for all the fury of her own Semblance, Cinder recalled Pyrrha Nikos devastating her with every hunk of metal that could be flung. Pyrrha Nikos may have failed to defeat Cinder Fall, but she hadn't left the fight unscarred. And Cinder speculated Pyrrha Nikos had never even come close to reaching the limits of her power.

She was sensing it more often- the magnetic pulls around her, of the fields generated by living beings, of the pieces of metal lining weapons or built into structures, and occasionally even the feel of metals deep underground, as though calling to her, begging her to practice with this new gift and wield it and bring all the power to the forefront for the world to see.

Cinder tried to remind herself that was the attitude of her old self, the one she tried to deny she was, the one Jaune Arc convinced her to move beyond.

But now Jaune offered no words, and alone with her thoughts, Cinder wondered how much she wished to change, when it meant denying what changes she could affect as she was. When it meant willfully constraining herself and muzzling the power she could bring to bear.

She needed to hear his voice, and be reminded that she didn't need to seek power to find happiness.

More than anything, she needed to hear those three words, and hoped that hearing them would offer the reassurance she needed, and rush away these meddlesome doubts. She knew how she felt, and she _thought_ she knew how Jaune felt, but she wasn't certain. And she had _always_ been certain of her course before.

* * *

Ruby had taken the lead on acquiring ammunition, being the team's resident… _enthusiast_. Ren was best suited to read a map, and so scouted a handful of different lodgings, providing insight into defensible positions and escape routes. Nora had gone along with them at Qrow's insistence someone strong be on-hand to protect his niece. And while Nora was happy to watch Ruby's back, the thought of leaving Jaune alone with Cinder irked her. And she was quick to convey that displeasure.

"What do you think she's telling him now?" Nora inquired to both as they slowly trotted through the streets, trying to remain inconspicuous, though Nora's loud questioning wasn't helping any.

"There is no point on speculating on matters we cannot affect," Ren replied, trying his best to dissuade Nora before she became irritated. He knew he was far too late, but he tried nonetheless.

"Did none of his sisters teach him anything?" Nora fumed, stewing in her resentment.

It wasn't like Ruby to be silent on the matter, but she continued to bite her tongue. Nora continued to cast glances her way, and Ruby knew the moment had come when she'd have to explain herself. She discreetly gestured at Ren, and Nora nodded.

"Ren, can you get to a vantage point and see if we're being tracked?" Nora requested. "I've got this funny feeling we attracted attention."

Ren refrained from commenting on that. He searched for a place to ascend and moved up to the rooftops of the shanties, moving up two stories and well out of earshot.

The moment she was certain they wouldn't be overheard, Nora asked: "What did you know and when did you know it?"

"When Emerald and Mercury attacked us that night, and Jaune was missing from the inn," Ruby answered, not meeting Nora's eye. "That's when I first saw him kiss Cinder."

"And what, you didn't think that was worth mentioning?" Nora quipped.

"I thought it was over after that night," Ruby explained. "I thought Jaune had realized what he'd done wrong. I didn't want to bring it up and cause any problems when it looked like everything had been resolved already."

"Any other secrets you're keeping?" Nora asked, narrowing her eyes ever so slightly. It wasn't like Nora to be suspicious –at least not in any serious manner- but she had clearly been affected by Jaune's recent actions.

Nora had been protective and supportive of Ruby while traveling with her. This had been the first time they'd really clashed; the first time they'd had any real, serious argument. Ruby wished she knew her action had been correct. At the time, it had just seemed a strange night. "No, of course not," Ruby promised.

Nora looked down, counting each breath, calming herself. It seemed, more than anyone else, Jaune's actions had hurt her. Ruby may have witnessed Pyrrha's death, but Nora had been a much closer friend.

"Cinder didn't kill me when she had the chance," Ruby reminded her. "Maybe Jaune _can_ help her. Maybe he can bring her to our side and give us a chance against Salem."

"Maybe he can do all that without kissing her," Nora flatly replied.

Before Ruby could compose her response –and she was still a ways off from a good answer- the sound of a siren drew their attention. Ren bounded down from the rooftops, landing between his friends. "The military is on the move. They're sending their patrol ships towards the kingdom borders."

The sirens were briefly interrupted by a radio announcement. "There is increased Grimm activity outside the kingdom walls. Please report to your district's designated safe house or emergency bunker."

"Grimm?" Ruby repeated. "Why now?"

"Perhaps they were drawn by the fire set in the forest?" Ren suggested.

"Or whatever negative emotions popped up when we broke out of prison," Nora added.

Ultimately, however, they reached the same conclusion. The Grimm had been commanded before, instructed to complete direct and specific goals. And an important piece of Salem's plan was now travelling with them.

They'd come for Cinder.

* * *

Qrow and Oscar had found a quiet table away from the bar to discuss the matter. Oscar felt he spent less time speaking his mind than he did repeating Ozpin's thoughts. Though to be fair, they were far more composed than his own.

"The last time I saw Cinder and Mr. Arc…" Oscar repeated, "…she was pushing him out of her way without a care in the world. She didn't feel anything for him without Miss Nikos' influence."

"And that may be what we need to focus on," Qrow confirmed. "Remind her that she wouldn't have got there on her own."

Oscar was quiet for several seconds as he listened to the voice in his head. He then repeated word for word, even if he clearly didn't understand the context of the words. "Did she have any parasitic Grimm on her? It's not like Salem to leave her children to their own devices."

"We met up with her in Lionheart's jail," Qrow answered. "I'm starting to think Leo might be working for the queen. Either Cinder was planted there or Salem's fed up with her."

Again Oscar was quiet for several seconds as Ozpin composed a response for him. "Either is a possibility, but she's too useful an asset for us to ignore. We should give her an opportunity to prove herself, as long as we have Jaune as leverage."

"Leverage?" Qrow repeated with a scoffing laugh. "You're a hell of a romantic, you know that, Oz?"

"If her feelings are genuine, then I'm glad she was able to realize how futile her pursuit of power was," Oscar answered, no word possessing the confidence Qrow expected from Ozpin. "Certainly I've made mistakes, but I like to think that as long as there is something out there Salem cannot predict or control, then maybe we have a way to beat her."

"And what do you have in mind?" Qrow wondered.

"Before this, she was undoubtedly molded by Salem's teachings," Oscar explained. "And I suspect Salem favors her, if she allowed her authority in the attack on Beacon. And that will make her… overconfident."

"Okay, you've got my attention," Qrow agreed.

"We need to send her a message," Oscar continued. "And tell her to open a path to… to what?" He looked incredulous as he spent several seconds in thought, then looked up at Qrow as he repeated the words one at a time: "…to…the…Heart…of…Remnant?"

Qrow blinked. "That's a new one on me, kid."

"You and me both," Oscar muttered as Ozpin began to explain in the boy's thoughts. "Cinder will know and Salem will know. If we can get Cinder to agree to the trial, then Salem will gladly take the challenge."

"Trial?" Qrow repeated.

"The way to be certain," Oscar explained, though he was clearly as lost as Qrow. "Whether this is the path she wishes to walk. If she is sincere, then she can purge herself of any doubt and undermine Salem _and_ the Grimm in her thrall. If she really cannot change, she will know and w _e_ will know." Oscar then offered some more specific details about the creation of the entrance to the Heart of Remnant, and the Grimm's black essence needed to codify it.

"Sounds risky, Oz," Qrow pointed out.

"It is," Oscar conceded. "But it's also possible she will not survive the trial, in which case the maiden's powers will reincarnate elsewhere." Oscar looked surprised the words had left his mouth. He'd probably never suggested someone die, possibly never even spoken the words in his young life. Now he'd expressed a willingness to put someone he didn't know –at least, Oscar Pine didn't know- on a dangerous track.

Qrow nodded. "Sounds to me like the pros outweigh the cons there."

Oscar averted his gaze as he relayed more of Ozpin's words. "Inform Cinder of this alternative. The suggestion will sound logical coming from you."

The sound of a siren caught their attention, followed by a radio announcement about Grimm on the city border.

"And quickly," Oscar suggested.

Qrow got up from the table, glancing back at Oscar. "When should I let the kids know about you?"

"We'll meet up soon," Oscar promised on Ozpin's behalf. "Better if we know where Cinder's loyalties lie before we reveal my hand."

Qrow nodded and headed out, topping off his flask with the cheap stuff on his way. Once he was out of the bar, Oscar faced the wall, speaking only to the voice in his head.

"I didn't know you were willing to let people die," Oscar dryly observed.

 _The world is more complicated than you've been told,_ Ozpin explained. _And having the ability to effect change upon it means you have to make some difficult decisions._

"Is it really so 'difficult' for you to kill off the same girl who killed you?" Oscar snidely replied.

 _I see you've taken the time to learn from my memories,_ Ozpin noted. _But it isn't revenge that motivates me; merely opportunity._

"And if she does die? What then? Does that make you responsible?" Oscar demanded, before asking the question that was really bothering him. "Does that make _me_ responsible?"

 _You have no choice but to be responsible. It may not be fair, what fate has burdened you with, but it_ _ **is**_ _. And if Cinder Fall cannot overcome the darkness in her soul, all she will ever be is a dangerous threat to the rest of the world._

"And what if you're wrong?" Oscar countered. "What if she's really changed, and you're just risking her life to satisfy your own doubts?"

 _I'd rather burden myself with the guilt of costing someone their life than leave the possibility they could do more harm,_ Ozpin answered. _Perhaps her love is real. That doesn't absolve her of her past misdeeds, and that doesn't mean her love will last forever._ _ **Nothing**_ _lasts forever._

* * *

Mistral was built into a mountain with a large waterfall at its center. The kingdom had solid natural barriers that would help keep out the advancing Grimm. Unfortunately, these same defenses also made it difficult for anyone outside the kingdom to flee and take refuge within it, and the poor and downtrodden living in the lower rungs of the kingdom had a much greater chance of seeing the Grimm break through and damage their homes. Such was the price for not being affluent in a society built around material goods; the rich got to be safe and secure, and the poor had to hope luck was on their side.

Still, the lighter defenses made it possible to slip into the kingdom when there was a crisis drawing law enforcement and military attention, and though the two never expected to have any difficulty infiltrating, their task was only made easier. The Grimm's approach had been quite timely… and though they didn't think it was on their account, it did nothing to put their minds at ease. If Salem really could control the Grimm –as it seemed she could when she'd ordered around the Seer in her meeting room- then she was sending them into Mistral herself, despite her plans for it previously requiring subtlety. Something had changed.

And they suspected that had something to do with Cinder.

There were still guards posted at one of the kingdom's southern gates. Emerald concentrated, projecting an image of a Beowolf approaching from their flank. One guard immediately lost his head and started shooting at it, while his colleague had no idea why the guy he was working with had suddenly discharged his weapon at what appeared to be empty air. With their attention diverted, Emerald and Mercury dashed in, then stopped and waited for a moment once on the other side of the wall. Once they were certain their presence had gone unnoticed they continued inward.

Mercury had delivered Cinder to the gates of Haven Academy itself, where Watts had collected her. It was unlikely she was still there, and even less likely Watts had gone rogue himself and intentionally kept Cinder from Salem's grasp. So the two would focus their attention elsewhere, and the best place to begin a search was at the foundation of the search area; at the bottom of the barrel where the downtrodden had no choice but to linger. Fortunately, those constantly looking up tended to be good observers who could spot subtle differences, as they were always looking for a way to ascend themselves. There was no way Cinder would be cowering in a bunker. She would be plotting, and if she needed resources, someone would've seen her acquire them.

Though the question remained as to what the two would do when they found her. If Cinder and Salem were about to enter direct opposition, what role would they have to play? Could they even help her in any meaningful way against someone so powerful?

Just one of many questions they'd have for her.

* * *

Cinder kept staring at Jaune's hands. She wanted to find some way to get his attention, and thought if he wouldn't speak, and she couldn't find the right words, she should try something non-verbal. Perhaps if she took his hand in her own, he might respond in some meaningful way. Yet now she was having difficulty performing the act, and she had no idea why; she'd performed much more affectionate and intimate acts with him many times. Why couldn't she bring herself to hold his hand?

She felt as helpless as Pyrrha Nikos had. She felt like a shy girl with a crush… but she had already kissed this man and he'd kissed her back… why did this suddenly seem so complicated when a day before it had been so simple? What had his friends put in his head?

"Jaune," she said to his back. She had no idea what she'd say next, or where to go from there, but she just wanted him to acknowledge her in some way.

Jaune did not turn. He continued walking, their supplies in a knapsack slung over his shoulder. "Yeah?"

"Look at me," Cinder requested. "Please."

Jaune finally stopped his march and turned around. His blue eyes met her single amber orb. He did not avert his gaze as he had before, but she saw none of the fierceness he'd possessed when he'd been determined in trying to redeem her while they were trapped together. Cinder fancied herself a good judge of expressions, but this one was unreadable. It hardly seemed like Jaune at all to appear so… ambivalent.

"Will you tell me what's bothering you?" Cinder asked, and perhaps for the first time since she was a child, her voice was weak and timid. She tried to imagine it was Pyrrha Nikos speaking… but that thought did nothing to assuage her concerns.

Jaune sighed. "I've had a lot on my mind."

That would not do. She wouldn't allow him to say so little. She needed more. "I trust your friends gave you food for thought?" The words were harsher than Cinder intended.

"They did," Jaune admitted. "And I was surprised to learn what they were all feeling."

"Should it matter how they feel?" Cinder scoffed. "Should anything matter but what _we_ feel?"

"They're my friends," Jaune replied, regaining some of the fierce determination Cinder had recalled and –only moments earlier- wished to see. "And they're _all_ disappointed in me."

"Only because they don't understand," Cinder attempted to reassure him. "Only because they don't believe that my love is real."

She hoped that would provoke him to take action, and confess what he felt. Instead it made him more withdrawn. He averted her gaze. "I believe that. They're not there yet."

He was so distant. Had he really changed so much in just a day?

Perhaps. _She_ had.

"What will it take for them to accept that I am here and wish to be here?" Cinder asked. "What do they need for me to do?"

"I don't know," Jaune answered honestly. "It'll take time before they can forgive you." At last he met her eye again. "This whole thing is going to be a process. It's not going to happen overnight. I know my friends have it in them to forgive; they just need more time."

More time would give them further opportunity to turn Jaune against her; to turn his feelings into something shameful and damaging. They'd already managed to instill doubt in him and reinforce his own belief his feelings were some character flaw, or birthed from a shallow, base desire rather than a deeper bond.

Cinder wanted to believe that he loved her, but had not yet summoned the ability to convey it. It took time and effort before one could say those three words.

Before Cinder could offer further thoughts on the matter she was interrupted by the sound of a siren, and then a radioed instruction for civilians to find shelter from the Grimm.

Grimm amassing on the kingdom's borders… Salem had finally decided to intervene. Now, if nothing else, Cinder would be able to figure out what she'd been plotting by depositing Cinder here and how it would differ from Watts and his own machinations.

"We should regroup," Cinder suggested. "Get back to your friends."

"Yeah," was Jaune's non-committal response.

Cinder and Jaune moved rapidly back to one of the seedy inns, exchanging no further words. The silence was louder to Cinder than the blazing sirens and the military aircraft moving to battle stations over their heads.

The other four were already in wait when Cinder and Jaune reached the inn. Qrow Branwen stepped forward and spoke. "Can I have a word with her in private?"

"Yeah," Jaune agreed, stepping past Qrow with the food and medicine. "I'll just drop these off and come back in a minute."

Cinder watched him depart, towards one of the rooms where his friends had gathered. Cinder deliberately avoided looking at Ruby Rose to avoid angering herself and focused instead on Nora Valkyrie. Whatever hooks _she_ had in him, she'd said something that had deeply affected him. And now Cinder would be out of earshot and they'd almost certainly whisper in Jaune's ear and instill further doubts.

"What do you want?" Cinder harshly inquired of Qrow, feeling the pain in her throat return once Jaune was out of sight, and feeling the ache of her wounds slowly reemerge after a period of peaceful calm.

When Qrow spoke, he was quiet –too quiet- in his inflection. "I think I've found a way to square things with us. But you're not gonna' like it, because of all it'll entail."

"What?" Cinder immediately asked.

"The Heart of Remnant," Qrow answered simply.

Cinder had a fire that raged under her skin. It had been a long time since she truly felt her blood run cold.

"How do you… know about that?" Cinder asked, voice pained and hoarse.

"Ozpin let me in on the secret," Qrow answered. "From your reaction, I'm guessing it's real."

Of course he hadn't known for certain. He'd never have had any reason to enter it. He'd never have heard anything more than a legend, and certainly not experienced it.

"Anyway, those Grimm about to knock on the door? Kill enough of 'em and someone with the know-how can make the portal to get in," Qrow continued. "And I'll bet Salem would be interested –just like I am- to know exactly which side you ended up on."

"And why should I… do this?" Cinder asked him.

"You shouldn't," Qrow admitted. "It's dangerous, and if things go sideways, none of us will end up any better off. But that army of Grimm outside might eventually decide to hurt a bunch of innocent people on their way to you. And the only alternatives I can think of to you taking the risk is us helping the jerks who imprisoned us fight off the horde or you going right back to working for your old boss."

"Is that the limit… of your… perception?" Cinder inquired, the words getting harder to say.

"You got a better idea?" Qrow pointedly asked.

Cinder weighed her options. If she just returned to Salem, perhaps that would prevent the Grimm attack before they reached the kingdom, but that would just reaffirm what Jaune's friends had been trying to convince him of and she could very well lose any chance of getting through to him again, and she'd be back under Salem's thumb with an even closer eye watching her every move. If she fought alongside these gifted amateurs and their drunken mentor, they _might_ be able to fend off the Grimm, but she'd pretty clearly demonstrate her betrayal to Salem and put herself and the boy who'd inspired this rebellion firmly in the queen's sights.

And if she entered the Heart of Remnant, she'd be judged. As she was. And she was still a work in progress…

"You think… she'll agree to it?" Cinder asked.

"I think she'll go for it," Qrow confirmed. "Because I think _she_ thinks you're still like her."

Salem had reason to believe that. What were a few days of acts compared to a lifetime as someone entirely different? Could a few positive changes really outweigh all the misdeeds that had preceded them?

Cinder recalled seeing that darkness. Even the surface of the pools made for a terrifying sight, as the negative energy of the planet collected and weaved together, and pain and suffering were given form and mass. Salem made a point to keep her meeting room overlooking the deepest and darkest pools, where Grimm sprouted constantly. It was a reminder of how little she had to fear... and how _much_ her subordinates had to fear.

They could simply run, and abandon Mistral to fend for itself. But Cinder doubted Ruby Rose or Nora Valkyrie or Lie Ren would do the same. She doubted even the pragmatic Qrow Branwen would simply retreat, even if it was the logical course. And so long as his friends needed him and there were innocents he could aid, Jaune Arc would remain.

Jaune was clearly suffering for the choice he'd made, in defending her. But what Qrow was asking… was Cinder willing to _die_ for him?

Pyrrha Nikos had been.

"Tell her, then," Cinder agreed. "If she agrees… then I'll do it."

It was a foolish course of action. If Salem agreed, it would be because she thought there was no risk and Cinder would return to her service once she saw the folly of trying to change.

And Qrow Branwen doubtlessly suggested it because he was willing to let her die in that darkness.

But if by some miracle she emerged from the Heart of Remnant as she was now, then she would be redeemed. Not in the eyes of any one person, but by darkness that had refused to consume her because of the light in her soul.

She had been given her power by a god of darkness. She'd always assumed she was tainted by it, destined to dwell within it. Until Jaune Arc had given her hope she'd long thought lost.

Hope, however small and weak it had appeared, had endured within her, despite Salem's teachings, despite the lessons the world had taught her, and despite Cinder's own efforts. She believed, however foolishly, however improbably, that she could be better.

Now it was time to learn if that was true.


	11. Alive Tonight

**Chapter Eleven: Alive Tonight**

Cinder took her time in exploring the outskirts of Salem's castle. The fortress was enormous, and surrounded on all sides by barren red stone and black pools of mysterious liquid, and massive crystalline structures that seemed to erupt right out from the ground. Cinder could not help but be curious about it all, even if her instincts were to flee from such ghastly and unnatural sights.

Salem focused Cinder's attention on the pools of inky black dug into the scarred red ground, as a young Beowolf dragged itself up from the dark liquid, its body seeming to constitute and form as it emerged.

"What is that?" Cinder cautiously asked.

"The bubbling mass of the Heart of Remnant," Salem answered.

"The Heart of Remnant?" Cinder repeated.

Salem stepped over to the edge of the pool, unconcerned for the young Beowolf. The beast snarled at her, but despite being little more than aggression cobbled together in a vaguely mammalian form, the creature moved on its way. Salem waved Cinder over, and she cautiously joined her mistress at the edge of the pool.

Salem waved her hand over it. The dark liquids began to recede, and Cinder saw an even greater darkness in the hole, like staring into a deep, empty well.

"This world, this remnant, is just a shell," Salem explained. "At its core, however, is the surviving fragment of what once was. In the chaos before the world's beginning, there was a heart that pumped out the blood upon which life was sown."

"The heart of the God of Light?" Cinder speculated.

Salem seemed amused by her question. "In a sense. But whether it was the older brother's creation or not, the younger brother corrupted it, and curdled its blood. Where the older brother sought to sire new life from the core of the planet, the younger brother used it instead to spread his darkness and forge the Grimm."

"How?" Cinder inquired.

"The god of darkness imbues upon the living his gifts," Salem answered. "Humans are his creations too, and those touched by his essence pass their Aura from life and it gathers together beneath the surface and gathers in the heart. There it combines with the negative energy that forges the Grimm, and further corrodes this remnant. In time, the weight of that darkness will shatter this damaged world and return it to nothing."

"And when –exactly- will that happen?" Cinder asked.

"When the Grimm overtake humanity and there are no more to accept the god's gifts," Salem answered. "An inevitability- but not one likely to occur just yet."

Cinder continued to peer into the darkness, wondering how deep it went. "The dark god blessed me. Is that where I'll go when I die?"

"Why wait?" Salem asked.

Cinder suddenly felt pressure on her back. She felt herself tumbling through empty air, her body contorting and twisting about as she fell. She glanced back up to see Salem standing on the red surface above her, as she continued to fall into the darkness.

Cinder tried to cry out to her mistress, but no sound left her lips. She just continued to fall, surrounded by darkness, suffocating her like deep, pressurized waters. She tried to use her Semblance to illuminate the area, but no flames raised from her hand. She just continued to fall.

And fall, and fall, deeper into suffocating, all-encompassing darkness…

Cinder reached her hands to clutch her throat, trying desperately to hold onto what air she could, and her vision was nothing but blackness… save for two streaks of light, one blue, and one red… each color filling either eye for the briefest moment.

Then she gasped as air met her lungs and she found herself lying on cracked red stone, the broken moon in the sky above her. Cinder glanced frantically around, Salem standing a few feet away, over the same pool of dark liquid she had shoved Cinder into.

"What… what _was_ that?" Cinder asked.

"What you carried in with you," Salem replied. "You returned to the world's beginning, and all that composes your whole went with you."

"I don't understand," Cinder admitted between gasps for air.

"Of course you don't," Salem agreed. "You barely dipped your toe in. If you had gone deeper, the warring nature of your soul would've ripped you in twain. You aren't ready to proceed further."

"Why would I 'proceed' at all?" Cinder asked.

"So you might know yourself, and all that exists within you," Salem answered. "When you are prepared, you can venture in and know the true nature of your soul."

Cinder wasn't sure she'd ever be so curious. "I have no interest in repeating that."

"That… is irrelevant," Salem flatly replied. "It is a challenge. I must force you to overcome it."

"Why?" Cinder asked.

"You want to be strong," Salem reminded her. "You cannot be strong if you don't know yourself. And we do not truly know ourselves until the weight of our words and deeds stares us in the face, and we choose to accept or reject the life we have lived."

Salem turned to face her pupil. "The darkness has chosen you. In time, you will be ready to immerse yourself in it, and to lay bare your words and deeds and be judged by them. When you are ready, you will overcome this trial… and when you emerge from the Heart of Remnant, you will emerge as a new and greater life. Just as I did."

Cinder looked over her mistress and wondered if she had always had gray and pallid skin and bloody red eyes. She had no wish to lose the visage she had, even if it would make her more powerful.

But then, Salem had a tendency to use metaphors in her speech. Perhaps there was something else in that darkness she was meant to find, something else Cinder had briefly seen, when two colors flashed before her.

Hopefully on her next visit she could tread carefully and not be carelessly thrown into the pit.

* * *

Qrow managed to sneak out of the kingdom's borders when the Mistralian soldiers met the Grimm in battle, calling for reinforcements to abandon a handful of watch towers and posts. He considered aiding them directly, if only to buy some time for his niece, her friends, and the blonde kid's squeeze, but figured he'd probably do better if he could be indiscriminate.

Qrow didn't usually invest the effort to speak to Grimm, but as he started cutting through Beowolves and Ursa on their way to the kingdom boundaries, he started repeating the same basic combination of words: "Salem, I want to talk!"

The corpses started mounting, and the Grimm began to disperse and break down, filling the air with black smoke. Qrow continued at a manic pace, slashing through one beast after another, constantly interjecting his request. He hadn't seen the tactician yet, but if he kept forcing the horde to move to his position, one would eventually move in and coordinate an assault.

And slowly but surely, he drew it out from the woods, as a Seer floated over and observed the trained huntsman as he put down one after another, the smoke of their disintegrating bodies filling the air. Eventually, the Seer reached up and waved its tendrils, weaving the smoke together and pulling the intact fragments of the defeated Grimm, cobbling the mismatched portions together and twisting and contorting them.

Qrow focused his attention on the Grimm's errand runner and waited. The queen had deigned to grant him an audience, so he decided to show some good faith and relax his guard. _Slightly_.

In the smoky haze, a pair of red eyes opened. The intact mouths of many Beowolves mashed together, spilling out multiple fangs and mending the lips together into a more complex amalgamation. Slowly, through multiple missing teeth and oversized flaps of flesh, the mouth inquired: "The last eye… I'm disappointed to see Tyrian failed to kill you."

"No need for flattery," Qrow assured her. "I've got your girl and I want to talk deal."

She contemplated his offer for a moment, even as her minions suffered to accommodate her. "Go on."

"Cinder says she's ready for the trial," Qrow explained. "She wants you to open the portal and let her into the Heart of Remnant."

If Salem had hesitated before, it was nothing compared to the length of her pause now. No doubt Salem was surprised to learn Qrow had some insights. It benefitted him to keep up that pretense and leave her to her own thoughts.

"Very well," Salem agreed, speaking through the distorted, cobbled together mouth. "I will make the necessary preparations. Tell Cinder to return to this spot at dawn, and I will clear the path for her to reach her destiny."

"Fine," Qrow agreed. He turned to depart.

"Tell me, huntsman… why would you so willingly return an asset to me?" Salem inquired. "Why would you surrender her to me when you gain nothing in return?"

Qrow had to conceal his ignorance on the matter, and didn't see reason to reveal his knowledge of Jaune's influence on Cinder. "Because I'm betting she'll die in that pit and you'll lose your 'asset' and she won't be my problem anymore."

"Quite to the point," Salem observed. "You may be right. She _may_ die. Or she may emerge as powerful as I knew she could become, with her faith restored and her mind clear of distraction."

Qrow shrugged. "Every battle plan carries its risk."

"You have my gratitude, huntsman," Salem told him. "Though I'll leave your death to Cinder's judgment, I'll suggest a modicum of… restraint in your case."

Qrow scoffed and headed away. The Seer that had maintained the connection point tore the Grimm fragments asunder and left them to dissipate, before floating away to relay a new command to the horde. The Grimm amassing on the kingdom border refocused their attention, slowly beginning to excavate, many of their number willingly destroying themselves as they built a deep scar in the ground, their darkness seeping into the ground and slowly mingling, leaving a deep pool of black blood in the hole…

* * *

Cinder felt the creature enter her body, wincing the whole time. Feeling its many legs run under her skin, hearing it grind against her bone and sinew… the whole process terrified her, and instinctively, she raised her body temperature and incinerated the parasitic invader, a burst of flame rising from her arm, followed by wisps of black smoke as the Grimm died within her.

"No!" Salem snapped, irritated.

Cinder looked up, genuinely apologetic. "I'm sorry, I-"

Salem struck her. Despite being barely taller than Cinder, the force of her hand sent the woman from Mistral flying across the castle hall, skidding along the stone floor, blood dribbling down her chin. Cinder coughed, her blood falling to the castle floor.

"Get up," Salem demanded. "Get up and try again."

"I- I don't know what happened," Cinder determinedly avoided Salem's gaze. "I reacted instinctively. I-"

Salem hoisted Cinder up at her neck with her right hand, holding her up so high her feet dangled above the ground. "You were _scared_ , and you reacted poorly. You cannot contain the Grimm within you if it can sense your fear. And as a result of your fear, you lost the conduit necessary for transferring the Maiden's Aura. Had this been the time for that conflict, you'd have lost your chance immediately."

Salem took her free hand to Cinder's chin, forcing the disciple to face her. "Even now, despite all you have, you're still afraid of them. To a common person, to a _weak_ person, that is a natural response. But you are _not_ common, and I will _not_ allow you to remain weak. So _try again_."

Salem dropped Cinder, the girl from Mistral unsteady on her feet. She watched as Salem called forth another of the strange, beetle like Grimm and moved to press it to the bare skin of Cinder's arm.

Cinder tried to rationalize it as a necessary step; as a task that would assist her in gaining the power she'd longed for. The Grimm were her allies now, and in Salem's thrall, they would not be a threat to her.

Yet all Cinder could think was embedding this parasitic creature within her was Salem branding her… and placing her in thrall too.

* * *

Mercury and Emerald found their way to the right inn quickly enough; making it there before Qrow returned from his meeting with Salem and her Grimm. Though Ruby, Nora, and Ren seemed inclined to pick up where they left off and fend them off, Cinder interjected herself, which did little to assuage their concerns.

"Wait, you and blondie?" Emerald asked, clearly stunned. Cinder sighed in evident irritation.

Cinder then took the time to explain the tentative alliance formed between herself and this ragtag bunch of former students. Mercury and Emerald were taking the time to question their life choices and how they ended up where they were.

"You don't have to remain with me," Cinder reminded them. "You can go anywhere you want. You can flee from this. You'll have better odds of surviving; at least for a while."

They were clearly tempted. Even working alongside Cinder, their primary motivation had always been self-interest. Remaining with Cinder now put them directly in the path of danger, and incurring the wrath of a very powerful woman with a massive army of Grimm at her command.

But Emerald had been hoping for a lighter and softer brand of criminal behavior after Beacon's destruction. She had followed Cinder despite her own reservations, even to within Salem's castle. She would happily follow Cinder on this new path, because Cinder had kept her safe and alive before.

Mercury was a different question entirely. He'd been recruited after a vicious battle against his own father, and trusted absolutely no one, even among his allies. But he was a pragmatist who preferred to work with the devil he knew, and despite the clear grudge many of the Beacon kids had against him, he didn't take anything personally. He too agreed to remain with Cinder, at least until the following day's events played out.

Still, Cinder found it best to segregate her teammates from Jaune's, at least for the moment, and assigned a room and a ration of food for them. She assured them she would take care of them and not force them to face any sort of punishment; rather she would take responsibility for their deeds as their leader.

However, Cinder had done all this not _only_ for the sake of her two allies, but to usher them away before they complicated things. Undoubtedly if they knew what she was about to attempt, they'd try to persuade her to run.

When Qrow returned and gave her the timeline, Cinder acknowledged it and made a simple request: time with Jaune, alone. Nora and Ruby weren't thrilled about the suggestion, but Jaune agreed, over their protests. Nora then remarked: "If I lose another teammate, you'll lose another eye."

It was an ideal way of reminding Jaune of Cinder's actions; of trying to dissuade him before Cinder could take hold of him again. All of it cloaked in the veil of being protective of her teammate.

But it didn't dissuade Jaune, and he agreed to Cinder's request. Though he had no new insight to offer, and he continued to move in the same stony silence that had irritated her throughout the day, Cinder led him along, through the abandoned slums and back to where she'd set up shop.

There was something very important she had to do.

* * *

Cinder had felt it time to branch out, and Salem had agreed to let her take on an apprentice. Emerald had proven herself quite a useful asset, and Cinder sought to expand her forces by recruiting the renowned assassin Marcus Black. When she'd arrived to find him engaged in battle, she was quite surprised to see the assassin outclassed and defeated- and by his own son, no less.

Mercury was quite to the point upon learning of Cinder's interest in him. "So, what's in it for me?"

Fortunately he didn't have a strong bargaining position, given his grievous injury and his burning house. He had nowhere to go and no legs to carry him anywhere. "I'll heal you. I'll find ways to employ your talents. It seems you've already surpassed your father… but I think, in time, under my tutelage, you could grow much stronger. So strong you'd never need to worry about having a roof over your head or food in your belly; you'd always be able to take whatever you needed."

That was appealing to his simple mind. It didn't take long to persuade him.

But this didn't sit as well with Cinder's first disciple. Emerald wasn't keen on bringing him along. When they were out of his earshot, Emerald protested: "We don't need him! Everything was going fine!"

Cinder would not allow herself to be contradicted by a subordinate, and struck Emerald at her cheek. "Do _not_ mistake your place."

Emerald held to the painful welt on her cheek and looked up at her mistress in shock. She'd seen this abuse before, and just as it had earlier in her life, it cowed her. She offered no further rebellion and fell in line.

And once Emerald was away from her side, Cinder looked down at her hand and thought back to when Salem had struck _her_. That wasn't a lesson Cinder had ever intended to impart.

Yet it was ingrained in her now, that the weaker followed the orders of the strong. And that at any time the strong could assert themselves over their followers. Uplifting them and aiding them entitled their masters to extract a toll. Survival was guaranteed to no one. Strength was for those who took it. Advancement was for those willing to bow their heads and bend their knees at their master's throne.

Helping others without demanding a toll only got you killed. It had happened to that little girl's parents, and they'd died for no reason at all.

Still, Cinder wanted her subordinates to be genuine in their loyalty. She wished for much of the world to fear her, to marvel at her strength, but among those she allied with, she also wished for their genuine respect and admiration.

Fear was not respect. Submission to her will was not loyalty.

She would try a gentler hand than the one Salem used. Salem might call it weakness to stifle the power she held, but Cinder thought perhaps a softer touch would inspire at least some small, fledgling trust in her recruits. If they believed she valued them –if she _really_ valued them- perhaps it might lead them to be driven to aid her without thinking only of their own selfish motivations.

And though she'd never apologize for it –or at least, not until she was certain that Emerald would be forever her loyal ally- Cinder thought if she showed some reconciliation, she could inspire strength in these two and make their inclusion in her plans that much more valuable.

* * *

Once alone in the room they'd been given by Cinder, Emerald turned to her partner. "Strange bedfellows, huh?"

"You mean the Beacon kids, or Cinder shacking up with one of them?" Mercury inquired.

"It boggles my mind," Emerald admitted. "I never thought I'd see her interested in _anyone_."

"Maybe you just weren't paying attention," Mercury scoffed. "She used to flirt and hook up with whoever she wanted to."

"That's different," Emerald insisted. "She wouldn't bother to tell us about the Arc kid if she wasn't serious about it."

"I don't see how," Mercury disagreed. "She'll play with him for a while and move on. This whole 'alliance' she's got set up; it's a scheme. Probably a long game, but she's got a plan. She's _always_ got a plan."

It wasn't surprising Mercury couldn't see it. How could someone who'd never known love recognize it or appreciate its subtlety? Emerald had always known her partner was socially stunted, but she hadn't quite realized he was so much more damaged than she was.

Emerald had seen the subtle signs in Cinder; that she had some understanding that the life she led was outside the norm. Cinder had to have given something up –had to have _lost_ something- to get to where she was, and had to bury whatever better nature she'd had before to survive in the world they all shared. She couldn't be weak, but she hadn't always been so strong.

Emerald had hoped Cinder might be able to turn back from it, but their skill sets weren't made for farmers and laborers. And if they couldn't grow food to eat or build roofs to put over their heads, they had to use what talents they _did_ possess to survive.

Maybe there was a different way than the one they'd always known. Maybe, somehow or other, the idiot blonde kid could convince Cinder not to be the thief and murderer she had been, and then Emerald wouldn't need to bloody her own hands any longer.

And maybe, without the need to fight and kill, Mercury could eventually understand there were other ways to make it through life. Or if he _did_ need to continue fighting, maybe he could join a kingdom's defense force or even go legit and study to become a huntsman. Maybe he could turn the skills he'd gained in blood and bone into something positive.

It was a strange feeling, to hope for change. But if Cinder could come back, so too could they.

* * *

Cinder woke in the dead of night in an unfamiliar room. She immediately glanced at her surroundings, her fear assuaged only after she'd seen Emerald and Mercury asleep in beds near her own, and realized she was in the guest dorm room at Beacon.

She wasn't used to sleeping in a comfortable bed. And ever since absorbing half of Amber's –of _the Fall Maiden's_ \- powers, she'd had even greater trouble sleeping through the night. She'd wake with gnawing pains, a burning sensation that ran from her stomach up her chest and cut her breaths short. So long as the transfer remained incomplete, she felt that burning well up periodically, like an insatiable hunger striking her beneath her skin.

Was this what it meant to be powerful? She had no idea becoming stronger also meant enduring constant pain. To her, it might have been preferable to be able to sleep through the night.

Instead she was left in this strange limbo, and unable to turn from it. She couldn't simply give the Fall Maiden her soul back. And she did not intend to continue on with this incomplete feeling burning at her from within.

She tried to remind herself that they were getting closer. That slowly but surely the plan would come together. Roman and Adam would play their parts, and Ozpin would expose his hand and she could finally gain the missing half of Amber's –the Fall Maiden's- soul and then she would no longer feel incomplete.

So close now. All her pain, all her doubt… it would end and it would all have been worth it. She would attain the destiny that she deserved, and the suffering inflicted would be a small cost.

That thought did nothing at all to help her sleep. But looking over at Mercury and Emerald, Cinder knew that things were progressing. She had reliable assistance, and even with the aid of Torchwick's mysterious ladyfriend, at least she'd have them in the first tournament round tomorrow.

Cinder counted down what events remained, again and again, meticulously organizing the details of her scheme until sleep took her again.

* * *

Once they reached the edge of Mistral's borders, Jaune recognized the location Cinder had brought him to, though he'd only ever heard it recounted to him. "This was your home? Er, your second home?"

Cinder nodded as she looked over the small hut. It had decayed over the years, but remained largely intact. Once she stepped inside, she found her hearth and her bed remained. Perhaps the thieves she'd supplied had left it alone. Perhaps they'd realized she hadn't left behind anything valuable enough for them to steal. Cinder scooped ash from the hearth and then placed her flames within it, where they burned without kindling. It made for quite a relief to finally release the fire that had been pent up within her for so long.

Once the room was illuminated, Cinder moved to sit on the bed. She tapped beside it, and Jaune slowly moved over and sat beside her.

"Do you understand what I'm going to do tomorrow?" Cinder asked him.

"Not really," Jaune admitted.

"Salem taught me about something a very long time ago," Cinder began. "About a way to determine who I really am, by undergoing a trial in a place called the Heart of Remnant."

"You believe her?" Jaune asked, innocently enough. In many ways he was still quite oblivious.

"I know it to be real," Cinder explained. "I experienced it, for only the briefest moment. I know it'll be… difficult. And I may not return from the trip as I am."

"But if you complete it, you'll know for certain?" Jaune asked. "You'll know that this is what you really want?"

"I hope that is the case," Cinder answered. "I wish I could say for certain." She looked down at her hand. "I'm not sure I'll be the same person when I come out that I am now."

Jaune was uncomfortably reminded of a similar conversation he'd had before Beacon fell. The memory had been an emotional one for Pyrrha, and to Cinder it was just as vivid. She reached towards his hand, remembering how comforting it had been when he'd –however inadvertently- placed his hand over hers' in the courtyard then. But she couldn't bring herself to take his hand in hers'. She couldn't seem to take hold of him.

She tried speaking instead. "I know who I am _now_ , but I've taken a second soul within me, and fragments of another. Within the Heart of Remnant, my soul will be pulled in multiple directions, and the other personalities within me will emerge. Whatever unity we may have at the moment, whatever common purpose we may have shared in the past…"

She didn't want to reveal she was scared. Even now, even when she'd brought him forth for the express purpose of confiding in him, she was still on the defensive.

Cinder pressed on. "I killed them both. I don't know how they'll emerge, or if we'll interact, but from what Salem told me, I have to carry the weight of my actions into that darkness, and I can't help but think I'll have to fight against them."

She wondered what Jaune was thinking. Undoubtedly it was difficult to comprehend; even Cinder, who had been preparing to eventually take the step, only understood a small part of the process. And Cinder couldn't help but wonder if on some level –somewhere deep down- Jaune wanted Pyrrha to reemerge and take her revenge, however meaningless it would be.

"Why did you agree to do this?" Jaune inquired. It was understandable he'd begin by asking the obvious question.

"For you," Cinder answered simply.

Jaune was quiet again. It really troubled her to listen to the deafening silence, but gradually Jaune attempted to break through it, because it perturbed him just as much to be so far from his usual mindset. "I'm sure you want to know what the others said about-"

"I don't," Cinder cut him off. "I don't need to know what they think. All that matters to me now –all that has _ever_ mattered- is what _you_ think." Cinder glanced up at him, meeting his gaze again. "And when I look in your eyes now, and see your doubt and your pain… it doesn't matter to me who put those feelings there. All that matters is I know you doubt me, and I wish I could change it.

"But I know there are so many things I can't change, and it's not something I'm used to feeling," Cinder continued, looking away again, her eye fixated on the fire in the hearth. "I've changed so much in my life, and done so many things I'd have believed impossible at one time or another, I really did believe I could accomplish anything if I wished it. It's why I thought when I told you how I felt –before I could truly say it was how _I_ felt- that you would drop everything and follow wherever I led.

"And yet I rejected any appeal you made, because the only changes I ever wanted to make were the ones I wished for myself," Cinder elaborated. "And there I was, trying to impose change on you without realizing it, and without making accommodations for the people in your life. I couldn't see it then, because all I could comprehend was what _I_ wanted to achieve, and not what you wanted for yourself. I thought I could simply win you over, overwhelm you with my power… and instead you convinced me by offering forgiveness."

Cinder finally met his eye again. "I don't want to know what they said about me, even if I can guess. I only want to know if you believe it. I want to know why it's hurting you so much."

"Nora and Ruby matter a great deal to me," Jaune confirmed. "But I'm here now, even though I know they don't want me to be. Because I believe in you. Because whatever our feelings are, wherever we've ended up… my first promise was that I'd help you, in whatever way I could. And an Arc-"

"-never goes back on his word," Cinder finished. He'd said the same thing when he'd worn a dress and taken her hand on the dance floor, and turned onlookers' laughter into cheers. People were still talking about the sheer audacity of his stunt when Cinder made it back.

She focused her attention on him again. She couldn't dwell on the past now; she didn't have long. "So, if you don't doubt me- why have you been so quiet?"

"I may disagree with them, but I still heard their words," Jaune explained. "And their problem wasn't that I was trying to help you. It was… the other stuff we were doing."

"Do you regret it?" Cinder asked.

She didn't want to know the answer.

"No, of course not," Jaune assured her.

Turned out she did.

"I feel how I feel," Jaune continued. "And maybe I didn't get it at first, maybe I thought there was something wrong with me, but even after all my doubts, even after everything Ruby and Nora said, I still wanted what I wanted."

She wanted him to say it. To say those three words.

But she had to know the important detail first. "And what _do_ you feel, Jaune?"

"I know you're not Pyrrha," Jaune answered. "I know that whatever part of her is still in you is just a part; just a piece of a greater whole. I cared for Pyrrha, and I'll always be grateful for the time I had with her." He pointed over to his ancestral weapon, emblazoned with a new sigil. "But _how_ you carry someone with you is important, too. They have weight, but they're only a burden if you let them be. I don't think she'd want me to carry her around forever."

That sentiment Cinder agreed with. It was encouraging to hear him talk so much, to reassert his thoughts in his blunt, direct manner. It was the honesty in him she'd been waiting to see again.

"There's something important I want you to do," Cinder told him.

"What?" Jaune asked.

Cinder pulled him down onto the bed, straddling atop and pinning him beneath her. "I want you to forget your doubt."

"Um-" Jaune began, until Cinder pressed her index finger over his lips.

"I don't know what'll become of me tomorrow, but I know who I am tonight," Cinder told him. "I am with you tonight. I am _whole_ tonight. I am _alive_ tonight. And if this is my last day as I am, then I intend to make good use of it."

She leaned down and kissed him. He was slow to respond, but Jaune did return the show of affection, pulling her down closer.

He was young. He'd probably never made it this far before. Cinder wondered if it had ever entered his mind as anything but an impure urge he would be quick to dismiss.

Pyrrha had once considered attempting this, after he'd taken her hand on the dance floor. She stopped herself at the last moment, not wanting to taint a wonderful evening with the possibility of rejection, or failure, or disappointment. She valued the dance far more, and thought she'd have plenty of time to see if things would ever go further.

Cinder had been here before, but never driven by love for her partner. Before, she had been seeking something less noble and much more direct. And Cinder might've waited a good while longer to take this step with Jaune, had things continued to progress between them.

Tonight, she knew she didn't have time to wait. And she wanted to experience this act when motivated by love of the soul, rather than longing for the body. She wanted this inexperienced boy for who he was, and not merely what her eye could convey.

She lost concentration and focused on the moment. The fire in the hearth began to whittle away. Jaune rolled over, pushing Cinder down. It was a clumsy movement, but somehow, that was all the more endearing.

Cinder wrapped her hands around the back of his neck and subtly guided him, and he kissed her again, as they lay beside the dying fire.

* * *

Cinder woke again, though she was used to seeing the dorm room ceiling now. She was much less used to being alone, but Mercury and Emerald had to put on a show later in the day against a pair of second-year Beacon students, and had already headed to the Amity Colosseum to keep up the pretense of preparing for the fight.

Mercury and Emerald had made for surprising comforts; she'd gotten so used to having them around she was having trouble sleeping alone. It vexed her. How had she attained this strange flaw? For years she'd operated autonomously, and it had never bothered her to be alone before. Not since she lost her family and rechristened herself Cinder Fall.

Perhaps it was because of her fear of Salem. When faced with someone more powerful than herself, it filled her with confidence to have loyal supporters nearby. It flew in the face of what Salem had taught her to rely on others rather than eliminate weaknesses within herself, but Cinder still found comfort in it. It may have been a flaw, it may eventually even become a liability, but it was what it was.

She wondered if she'd slept a full night since she'd stolen half of Amber's – _the Fall Maiden's_ \- power. Her dreams were so distorted and malformed, as memories of a life not her own tried to force their way out of the dark corners of her mind and Cinder beat them back, only to wake feeling both weary and restless. Seeing Emerald and Mercury nearby had reassured her, and she'd gone back to sleep in course.

The hunger pangs were worse when she was alone. The incomplete feeling, the longing to be whole… when she was alone, when she didn't have to hide her weakness from her subordinates, the pain was that much more real. There was no way to deny it and no reason to summon the willpower to try.

Again she reminded herself, she'd be there very soon… and in addition to all the power she'd obtain, she'd sleep through the night.

* * *

Oscar wasn't used to sleeping without a long day of tilling soil and working the land. His abundance of lingering energy compounded with the increased concern of the voice of the old guy in his head, and as he rolled around in the creaky wooden bed of the inn, he eventually gave up and turned his attention inward.

"We should talk to her before she goes there," Oscar suggested.

 _That would be a needless complication. And as we are relying on Salem to orchestrate these events, if Cinder Fall is aware of my… status, she might barter that information to get back in her mistress's good graces._

"Look, we may not be in agreement about a lot of things, but we're getting there," Oscar pointed out. "We could help her with whatever difficulty she's having. We could give her encouragement, just like that Jaune guy is doing."

 _And in doing so risk revealing ourselves. Believe me, Oscar, I_ _ **want**_ _to offer her my help. But until I am certain she is genuine in her intent, I will not risk it. There is more at stake here than the fate of a single lost soul._

"How are we supposed to solve the world's big problems if we don't try and fix its small ones?" Oscar inquired.

For once, Ozpin was quiet in the boy's head. But only briefly. _We will never have enough time to fix all the world's ills. We won't save everyone, no matter how much we might want to._

"That same logic apply to your students?" Oscar asked him. "Or just her?"

 _My students all grow to become hunstmen. I_ _ **expect**_ _them to make sacrifices for the greater good, when the onus is upon them. Cinder Fall had many chances in her life to make this change. I would certainly be pleased to see if she was genuine in her intent, but I'd be foolish not to prepare for the alternative._

"I think it's foolish not to try and help someone we can help," Oscar replied.

 _And I hope you maintain that sentiment, Oscar. It's one sorely lacking in this world. It can be a powerful motivation, but never forget that it is a single thought vastly outnumbered by… less noble intentions._

* * *

Cinder prepared to give her grand speech, standing on a rooftop of a Beacon dorm, well below the Amity Colosseum. The poor little robot girl had been diced to bits, and the world looked on in shock and horror. All terrible negative emotions Cinder was about to exacerbate with her words, in ways that would summon the Grimm to the gathering, and destroy any illusion of trust between the four kingdoms as well as leave Beacon damaged enough for Cinder to claim what was hers' _and_ steal a bauble for her mistress.

She felt a degree of sympathy for the poor girl Penny as she lay dismembered at the hands of 'the invincible girl' Pyrrha Nikos. From what little Cinder had learned about Penny, it seemed the little robot had rather enjoyed pretending to be a real girl.

Cinder understood that motivation, even if it wasn't one she shared. Once she had all the power she'd been seeking, she would never again conceal herself or hide her true nature. She would be who she was without fear. Fear would be for the small and the weak. Not for her.

It was unfortunate she'd had to cut poor Penny's legs from under her, making her brief taste of freedom the only one she'd ever know. The puppet may have been free of her strings, but she was still just a puppet- still a tool in someone else's play, to be manipulated.

That was what happened to the weak. They were used up, and they died. That was Penny's destiny, and her choice to conceal her true nature had enabled Cinder to enact this plan.

Cinder opened her mouth and began to reveal just how badly Ozpin had been fooled.

* * *

Cinder finished adjusting the collar of her dress and looked down at Jaune, still asleep in her old bed. She reached down to run a hand over his forehead, ruffling his blonde locks. She'd envisioned this moment, of the two of them together, of him sleeping beside her, and wished she could make this moment last just a little longer.

Cinder leaned down and kissed his forehead. "I'm sorry," she whispered.

In his dreams, Jaune heard Pyrrha say the same thing as she sent him away from danger and she rushed off to face an adversary she knew she could not defeat. He pounded helplessly against the metal walls of his locker as Pyrrha launched him into the sky.

Abruptly, his mind placed him elsewhere, in the forests outside Mistral, when Cinder confessed her love and he did not respond.

She had clearly expected those words to change everything. They hadn't.

And yet… he wanted to kiss her. Not merely because of some adolescent lust, but because he wanted to believe Pyrrha was still within her, and he could finally return the love she hadn't been able to confess to him in life.

Only it was Cinder who loved him.

Or was it both?

And if so- did he, then, love Cinder?

And if he did, why couldn't he say it?

* * *

Cinder lay atop Beacon tower, blood dribbling from the left side of her face. Her left arm was numb. Her whole body ached. _Something_ had hit her, something that had left her unable to rise and defend herself or retreat. The pain of her wounds reminded her: she was alive tonight, though not for much longer...

She was in a hostile area surrounded by Grimm. They may have been her allies in the battle, but now she was just a defenseless source of Aura they cold prey upon. Whatever control Salem exerted over them, Cinder had not yet attained it. In the end, the Grimm would destroy –or at least try to destroy- _everything_ they came across, because that was what they were made to do.

Worse, one of the surviving huntsmen could find her and capture her- or kill her. What a terrible embarrassment that would be- and embarrassment compounded by the fact that girl Ruby Rose –that mere _novice_ \- had somehow inflicted damage enough to best her completely.

She could die right there, on that roof, from the injuries she'd sustained. How ironic it would be… to die after finally, briefly feeling complete. Cinder had sacrificed so many lives in pursuit of her power, it would seem only fitting it should prove meaningless in the end.

She was fading in and out of consciousness. She may not have had long…

Emerald and Mercury stood over her. She'd never intended to let them see her vulnerable. They might try and kill her now; they'd never have a better opportunity. And though Emerald had never indicated she knew about the maidens' powers, if she killed Cinder now Emerald could steal them away, and attain the powers Cinder had long sought. Or they could simply abandon her, now that they'd seen her fail.

Instead, Mercury carried her off that rooftop and Emerald led them to safety. The bond she'd formed with them, the fragile alliance of killers and thieves… saved her life.

Either of them would've abandoned her if they'd been the people they'd been before. If Cinder had never come into their lives.

It was a strange thought, that _she_ might change others for the better, and not only to better herself.

* * *

Cinder walked away from her old home, fixating her attention on what lay ahead and not allowing herself to look back. She didn't want to be tempted to stay. And she doubted Salem would be patient with her. As she walked, she felt the pain in her arm and eye again, though notably, her throat seemed quite better. Her breaths came easier, and she thought she might be able to speak again without pause.

Cinder found her way back to the inn, to find Qrow already awake –if he'd slept at all- and he informed her of the location Salem had chosen. It was a needless bit of trivia; Cinder sensed it, through her growing connection with the magnetic pulls of the world around her. She knew where the Grimm had broken into the soil and where the metals beneath the dirt had been scattered.

She stepped out, through the abandoned slums, and then to the kingdom borders, where a handful of soldiers remained to man the walls, with a few scattered ships patrolling the air above them. The Mistralian army had been considerably reduced after their first skirmish with the Grimm, and they'd fallen back to defensive positions. If they noticed her leave, they made no effort to stop her. No doubt they welcomed the thought of someone else walking out into the midst of that horde.

The central waterfall of the kingdom littered the area with a heavy mist. The presence of so many Grimm had led to the formation of heavy black storm clouds overhead, with the occasional rumble of thunder echoing in the distance. Cinder walked on, even if she could barely see ahead of her. The only sign of dawn was a faint outline of orange to the east.

Illuminated in that faint light, Cinder saw it- a giant Nevermore, flapping through the blustering storm winds, carrying a precious cargo from the east, from a castle that stood in a territory of barren red rock, and land overtaken by the Grimm.

Salem stood on the beast's back, without reins to hold, without fear of the storm overhead. The Grimm was her servant, and the darkness her home. She had no need for fear. She had no reason to be afraid.

The winged beast descended before Cinder and Salem stepped from the Nevermore's back. She smiled broadly. "Hello again, child."

Cinder's voice had returned, and she made use of it. "Let's begin."

"A moment," Salem requested. "If you'd rather not take this step, I have… an alternative." Salem pointed to the ground. "Surrender. Kneel before me, and forswear the child who has vexed you. I will forgive you –and your underlings- for your folly, and allow you to return to the fold. I will continue your training, and we need never again be bothered by these fleeting moments of foolishness. I can forgive you your error. I can forgive you your doubts."

It was a generous offer from her mistress. Salem tolerated some degree of failure, when circumstances outside of her control interfered, and her orders had still been followed and loyalty of her subordinates had been clearly demonstrated.

"Thank you," Cinder said, trying to sound sincere. "But I've been waiting for this moment. This trial has always been a part of my destiny, and I'm ready to take that step."

Salem nodded. "Very well."

She waved her right hand, and the ground opened up, revealing the swirling mass of black liquid the Grimm had created. Salem slowly weaved it with her fingers, her left hand stationary at her side.

The path to the Heart of Remnant opened, and Cinder peered down into the darkness.

"Go on, child," Salem instructed. "Learn who you truly are."

Cinder looked into the formless black, knowing that she might not return from her journey within it the same woman she was. She might not return at all.

She thought of Jaune, lying in her bed, and running her fingers through his hair. She remembered envisioning that moment, when Watts had taunted her on the other side of the bars of her jail cell. She remembered the night on Beacon tower, when it had seemed all her efforts were for naught and she escaped certain death at the last moment.

 _Do you believe in destiny?_

Cinder closed her eye and stepped forward, casting herself into the Heart of Remnant.


	12. Those Three Words

**Chapter Twelve: Those Three Words**

Cinder fell for a long time, sinking into a seemingly endless darkness. While her first experience in this descent had left her feeling suffocated, this time she felt only as though she were constantly falling, with nothing beneath her but more blackness, and nothing above her but the dim light of the entrance Salem had created, growing increasingly further away.

Somewhere in that blackness she saw a flash of red, then blue. Cinder tried to follow it, but her limited depth perception made that a trying task. She focused her attention on the red, perhaps because she associated it with the Grimm, and waited for it to be the source of an attack.

That red flash began to slow in its movements, becoming instead a blur, then a solid mass of color slowly orbiting her. The blue followed a similar transformation as its movements slowed to a crawl, until both rotated around her with the speed of a tortoise.

Cinder also felt her descent slowing. She wasn't yet standing on any solid ground, but she no longer felt as though she were in freefall. She was able to re-orient herself, to come to a standing position between the two sluggish masses of color. She watched as each began to take shape, protruding out extremities- arms, legs, heads… taking on a humanoid form composed of their solid color and black lines to give them features.

Each continued to grow and contort, the color sharpening or fading in one place or another. The dark lines made the features more pronounced, until at last, Cinder recognized what had become of the red: "How?"

Cinder looked at a facsimile of herself, as she had been before her maiming. She was young, beautiful, with two full amber eyes (though her left was hidden by her bangs), a long mane of dark hair, and a disarming smile. She wore the red dress she'd favored before, with the black shorts and dark glass heels she'd worn at Beacon. This reddish incarnation of her past self continued to smile, even as Cinder tried to find a way to articulate her confusion.

The blue mass had taken form as well: a girl in a simple cloth traveler's outfit, whose only notable feature was a long hooded cloak. It had been a while, but Cinder would never forget her. Amber, the former Fall Maiden, cast in blue. The two stopped rotating around her and became stationary, Amber on her left, and the second Cinder on her right.

Cinder finally felt as though her feet were touching ground, though there was nothing below her but more formless dark. She moved her eye between the two, trying to comprehend what stood before her.

"Who are you?" Cinder inquired, to both, and to neither.

The second Cinder answered first: "The reflection of your soul. What you are-"

"-and what you carry with you," Amber continued. "And your burden is heavy."

* * *

Nora and Ruby hadn't had much luck in convincing themselves to sleep. Ren got there straight away, but the girls continued to worry about Jaune and speculate on where Cinder had taken him. Several hours into the night without their return, they quickly drew the obvious conclusion. Neither of them vocalized it to each other, but both were surprised things had progressed like that. It certainly changed their perception of Jaune.

Nora in particular was crushed by disappointment. Jaune could be foolhardy and stubborn, but he had a good heart. Seeing him in Cinder's grip was strangling her spirit and dampening her mood, and she'd been even more positive than usual just days beforehand, when they'd finally arrived in Mistral and she and Ren had grown a bit closer.

She wondered if that had in some way affected Jaune and led him to seek companionship. She and Ren hadn't gone very far –she hugged him all the time before then anyway- but Jaune had spent enough time in close quarters with them to realize that things had changed, just a little bit. He must've felt like a third wheel at times, staying with them while Ruby tended to Qrow.

Nora felt as though she'd let Pyrrha down in allowing this to happen, and letting that vile woman ensnare Jaune right under Nora's nose. And now one of the most important people in her life was slowly slipping away from her, mere months after she'd lost one of her closest friends. And they were taken by the same woman. How could Nora _not_ hate her for that?

She had so few people in her life that were truly important to her. And while she could always count on having Ren at her side, Nora had quite enjoyed expanding her circle of friends during their time together at Beacon, and seeing the number reduced had demoralized her more than she anticipated.

Ruby, shifting uncomfortably in a bed across the room, was trying to get to sleep, but only out of necessity. She needed to rest, but she desperately wished not to dream. Ruby had been haunted by the memories of that day when Beacon fell, and two of her friends had died while she could do nothing but watch. Penny's death had been horrific enough, but Pyrrha's had been only feet away when Ruby arrived. She'd heard Pyrrha's last words before Cinder killed her, and those words echoed in her mind at night as she replayed the event again and again.

And now Jaune and Cinder…

Jaune offered Ruby an outstretched hand on her first day at Beacon, and gave her hope with his endearing ineptitude. Since that day he'd been her best friend outside her team, and she'd never had much reason to be upset with him or disappointed in him until the night she saw him kiss Cinder Fall.

Yet now, it seemed his efforts had made a change in Cinder. She clearly hated Ruby for… for whatever her silver eyes had done to damage Cinder. But when Cinder had Ruby at her mercy, she buried her anger and turned around. If she was simply trying to manipulate them, Cinder had really committed to the task. And if Jaune was willing to forgive her for killing Pyrrha, surely Ruby could find it in herself to forgive Cinder too, and let Jaune continue to be a positive influence that pulled Cinder away from the dark path she'd walked before.

But Ruby didn't want to forgive Cinder, even if that would've been the best course of action to take. She wanted revenge. She wanted to kill that evil woman for her crimes.

Ruby dreamed of being a hero when she was a kid. Heroes may have cut swathes through the forces of evil, but they didn't kill their enemies when there was a chance for them to repent and find redemption.

Now Ruby dreamt of her friend dying while she looked on, helpless to do anything. And Ruby had a power that could destroy the woman responsible and find vengeance, and maybe put an end to the recurring nightmare.

Was it so wrong to want to kill a murderer? And was it heroic to simply let one walk away from her crimes?

* * *

Cinder fixated her attention on the red woman, this projection of her younger self standing at her right. This second Cinder only continued to smile at her, showing the confidence and swagger Cinder had been lacking since she'd been maimed. Cinder thought about how much she'd lost, and her anger began to well up within her, wisps of fire rising from her fingertips.

"Yes, let it out," the younger Cinder suggested, in that seductive coo she could summon on command. "Let the fire burn out of control. Let the world be awed by the strength you've so deliberately withheld."

"Power is not only meant to be used," replied the blue facsimile of Amber on her left. "You understand the importance of restraint, and now more than ever you know that power alone is meaningless."

"Power is everything!" the younger Cinder shouted. "Power determines who lives and who dies! Power is the only thing that Grimm, Faunus, and humans alike respect! Power is the only thing that can make any impact on the movement of the world!"

"Power is not what you want," Amber argued on Cinder's left.

"Power is what you _are_ ," argued the younger Cinder on her right. "You keep growing stronger and stronger." She pointed at the blue specter. " _She_ wants to muzzle you because you took all her power away. She wants to pull you back so you never surpass her as she was in life."

Amber ignored the taunt. "Power didn't make you happy like you were today. Like you were with _him_."

"You have already claimed him," the younger Cinder argued. "No one can resist you, and he would forgive you any crime. He already forgave you Nikos' death- now that he has known your body he will never go astray. He belongs to you and will pledge everything to you. He will love you forever, no matter where you go from here."

"But will his smile be genuine?" Amber asked. "Will his words be his own, or what you want to hear?"

"What difference does it make?" the younger Cinder demanded. "What matters but your own happiness? What are you if not what you've won and what more you can take? It doesn't matter what words come out of his mouth so long as he does what you want!"

"It does matter," Cinder argued. "What he thinks… it _does_ matter to me."

"But his thoughts aren't his own!" the younger Cinder protested. "Nora Valkyrie and Ruby Rose are turning him against you! They'll change him and bend him to their wills if you don't take him from their grips. He belongs to you, and you have the power to stake your claim!"

"You should be grateful for what you have," Amber suggested. "That someone cares about you; for most of your life you have been wanting. You would not want to change if the change did not appeal to you."

"What are his feelings without proof of his commitment?" the younger Cinder interjected. "Make the decision for him! You're stronger than him, and stronger than all his little friends! Take what you want! Don't wait for his friends to force him from your grip!"

"You don't want to force his hand," Amber reminded her. "You want his faith to be real, because his words are honest. They are not born of fear."

"What is faith? You don't know, and you _have_ to know!" the younger Cinder pressed. "Why else would you hide the power you have? Because you seem to think your second Semblance will drive him away, when instead it will ensure his loyalty! The more power you accrue, the stronger your grip, and the stronger his devotion to you in turn!"

"If you believed that, you would never have heard his words," Amber pointed out. "You'd have never told him who you were. You'd have never come this far."

"Where, exactly, have you gone? What have you gained?" the younger Cinder demanded. "How can you be moving forward if you haven't grown stronger? How can a bunch of words be anything but a waste of time if you haven't improved yourself?"

"You have changed, and you want to change further," Amber interjected. "You wouldn't think you could be better if it wasn't possible. And you know you won't get any better if you just keep stealing and killing, and that's all you'll do if you continue to sit at Salem's table, in one context or another."

"She is your possession now too, and wants you to get weaker and never attain the power you're meant to," the younger Cinder argued. "This isn't a show of compassion; it's a petty revenge, trying to force you into the same mediocre end she met."

Cinder weighed on her thoughts, remembering when she killed Amber in Ozpin's vault, then killed Pyrrha Nikos in the same manner. Amber's death went unmourned, with no loved ones to witness her. Cinder had coveted her power, but no one had stood beside Amber at her deathbed. No one who wanted to be with her in her final moments: only others seeking to steal her power for their own ends.

Cinder hoped death was far off, but she'd brushed with it recently, and still felt the lingering effects, the pain in her eye and arm. And she had been alone, and expected to die alone.

Cinder looked at the younger version of herself. "Why would you want to be strong if you have to be alone?"

"You don't!" the younger Cinder protested. "You can _make_ him as you wish, because he is already yours' to mold!"

"He is not mine," Cinder softly replied. "Not until I earn him. Not until I deserve to have him."

The younger Cinder was furious. "You deserve everything you are strong enough to hold!"

Cinder shook her head. "He offered to give himself over to me. That wasn't what I wanted. I wanted him to be with me of his own accord. It doesn't matter if I'm strong enough to force his hand."

"Strength is what you wanted-" the younger Cinder began.

"Wanted," Cinder confirmed.

Once. Not now.

She looked at the blue form of Amber, the former Fall Maiden. "I wanted your power, so I took it, even though I knew it would cost you your life. Even though I knew it would change me." Cinder looked down at her hand, at the small wisps of flame still rising from her fingertips. "I've never wanted to change on someone else's behalf before, never wanted to submit myself to anyone else's will. But now, someone else matters to me, and I don't want to meet your end, when someone strong and ambitious comes calling."

"Say your piece," Amber instructed.

"It's not what I have to say," Cinder said. "It's what I have to ask." Cinder suppressed the fire raging below the surface, and extended her hand. "Will you forgive me?"

* * *

Salem sensed the hatred in the pool fading away, and the dark waves began to contort. There was nothing for the darkness to feed upon, and so it sought to flee, and in doing so, expose the tapestry beneath it, and free it from its corruption, and be as it had been before it was tainted by malice.

That would not do. Cinder _needed_ to hate, or she would never play the part Salem had in mind. It was astonishing to think this boy had affected her so, but Salem was losing her grip, and right in front of a massive audience of Grimm whose fear of her was all that gave her control over them.

Fortunately, she had come prepared in case of this eventuality, and opened her left hand, pouring into the Heart of Remnant the remaining Aura, the wisps of the soul of Pyrrha Nikos Salem had already extracted. Once within, the Aura would find no vessel in the soulless mass formed by the Grimm, and so would pursue the other fragment of itself that remained within Cinder, and reconstitute itself.

Cinder faced the darkness of her soul, and was attempting to reject it. To forget her hate and her ambition and recapture the light she had snuffed out for so long. But within her soul existed the remainder of another, one linked to her through powerful emotion.

Emotion could be positive, but the bond between Pyrrha Nikos and Cinder had been born in their death throes; death throes wrought entirely by Cinder's own hand.

Whatever form it took there, where Cinder's soul drifted and split, it would recognize the woman who killed its last vessel. It would act as it had in life, and Cinder's self-interest would reassert itself, and she'd do what she needed to. She would blot out every last flicker of light if that was what she needed to do to survive.

It wasn't what Salem had intended, but it might work for the better. If Cinder surrendered to her negativity on her own, she might continue to scheme. She might still try to circumvent Salem's will and bolster her own position, driven only by her self-interest. If Cinder destroyed her hope of her own accord in order to survive, the despair would overtake her. There was no despair like that chosen in the name of survival.

It might cost Cinder that power she'd accrued, or it might bolster it, if Cinder could shatter what remained of Pyrrha Nikos and draw into herself the essence that lingered. Either way, she would reject the chance to change herself and be as she was. As she was destined to be. And her hope would be gone, and her hate would be her new lifeblood.

Either way, she would be Salem's creature again.

* * *

When Jaune woke and realized Cinder wasn't beside him, he'd hastily dressed and headed back to the inn. It took him a while to retrace his steps, and he got lost a few times in the slums, but eventually he found the location where his friends had set up.

The sun had barely risen, and they should've been asleep, but Qrow was already halfway through his flask and Ruby and Nora were still up, lying awake in their beds.

"Where is she?" Jaune asked.

"You already know where she went," Qrow suggested. "She not leave a note to say when she'd be back?"

Jaune ignored the sass. "Where did she go?"

"Kid, this isn't for us," Qrow told him, trying a less snarky tone. "What she's going through right now- I don't pretend to understand it, but the way Oz pitched it to me, it's something you go through alone, and not something most people would ever want to put themselves through."

"I want to help her," Jaune firmly replied. "In any way I can."

"You not help her enough last night?" Qrow asked.

Jaune clenched his fist, but let the remark pass. "Qrow. Please."

Nora sat up, drawing both of their attention. Without looking at Jaune, she remarked: "She doesn't want your help. Or she wouldn't have left without saying goodbye."

"Nora," Jaune began, "I know you've been upset with me over this. I know you don't understand it, but- I just need to help her do this."

"Why? She suddenly promise not to kill anyone else?" Nora asked. "Or did you just change your priorities after whatever you two were up to?"

"Nora, she thought she might die," Jaune told her. "She was afraid."

"Good," was Nora's dismissive reply.

"That's enough."

Both Nora and Jaune stopped talking at the sound, as Ren sat up in his bed. "That's enough, Nora."

"Ren," Nora breathed. "You don't honestly think-?"

"I think you're talking out of love for our friend, and you're letting your emotions get in the way," Ren answered. "Just like I did in Kuroyuri. Just like you convinced me not to, and saved me from making a mistake."

"Right!" Nora confirmed. "Just like Jaune's-"

"Jaune is not making a mistake," Ren interjected.

Everyone was thrown, even Jaune. Nora was speechless for perhaps the second time ever.

"I cared deeply for Pyrrha," Ren continued. "She was my friend and my comrade, and I miss her every day. But she was also a huntress, and she did as she wished, and died in battle, as we all may, as we all must expect to. We must respect her choice to do so, and in turn respect Jaune's wish to live as he chooses."

"But… but, Jaune's talking about… that woman… who _killed_ …" Nora tried to argue, torn by anger, before Ren raised his hand to quell her.

"We carry Pyrrha with us, in our memories," Ren continued. "But if we only think of her death, then that memory will only be a burden. I carried such a burden for far too long, and the demons of my past would've destroyed me if I allowed them to. If my friend hadn't encouraged me to move on from them."

"Ren…" Jaune began, but he too was silenced by a wave of Ren's hand.

"Jaune, whatever she means to you, whatever you have to do, I will help you," Ren promised. "I will not hold you back, and I will not get in your way. I can think of no more sure way to dishonor my friend's memory than to hold another friend back and deny him his wish. Whatever Pyrrha decided at the end of her life, in the brief time I knew her, her support of Jaune was unwavering."

Ruby sat up, averting her gaze from the others. "I don't trust Cinder. I don't know if I'll ever be able to."

"Exactly!" Nora agreed.

"But I do trust Jaune," Ruby added. "And no matter who he's helping, I believe him when he says he _has_ to help them."

"Oh, come on," Nora groaned. "Not you too…"

"Yes, me too," Ruby answered. "If we can help someone, we should."

Nora scoffed before looking up at Jaune. Jaune looked back at her, taking a moment to compose his thoughts. "Nora, I'm not asking you to forgive her. I'm not asking you to like her. I'm not asking you to believe in her- I'm asking you to believe in _me._ "

She wanted to. She just didn't know how to make that leap, when it meant supporting him in… whatever this thing with Cinder was.

Jaune put a hand on her shoulder. "I know you want what's best for me. I know you're trying to help. But _I'm_ trying to help too. And I know how to, and I know that what I'm doing is making a difference. And that's what we wanted to do; that's why we went to Beacon. That's why we met. And yeah, maybe we didn't expect that this is how things would turn out, but it's where we are. We can either remain where we are or we can try to move forward. And I'd rather try."

Nora met his eyes. She recognized that determination, even in the face of very long odds.

"What do you need to do?" Nora asked.

* * *

The blue facsimile of Amber considered Cinder's request. "How can I forgive you when you suppress my essence within you?"

"It's a trick!" the red facsimile of a younger Cinder interjected. "She's trying to free herself and take her power back!"

"You have no reason to trust me," Amber conceded. "But how else will you know?" She then echoed her rival. "And you do have to know."

That was true. Cinder had actively ignored the thoughts of Amber, waiting for the soul to fade away. She'd never thought to try and rouse it and speak with it. It might offer some sense of closure, for either of them. She wasn't even sure how to call upon it, she'd spent so much time pretending it wasn't there.

But as she concentrated on it, she felt it welling within her, a cool blue below the surface of red flame. She tried to focus, to draw it forth, and fell so deep in concentration she closed her eye.

The colors flashed. They circled rapidly around her again, and Cinder opened her eye to try and follow them, only to watch the two colors mingle together, swirling around, each color mingling with the other… turning into a mass of purple.

And then taking a new, humanoid form, a tall woman with a long tail of hair… and a tiara.

A tiara Cinder had once claimed as a trophy.

A purple facsimile of Pyrrha Nikos stood before her, her shortspear and shield drawn. "You want me to forgive you? You think _anyone_ can forgive you?"

Though momentarily taken aback, Cinder steeled herself. "Jaune can."

"You seduced him," Pyrrha spat. "You tricked him. You really think he'll ever be able to move past what you've done?"

Cinder recalled ruffling his hair before she left his side, wondering what he was dreaming about… wondering if perhaps Jaune would ever suffer a nightmare recalling the loss he'd suffered, and if he'd ever wake lying beside her, and think about how he ended up sleeping next to the woman who killed Pyrrha…

She'd envisioned that moment multiple times, of her and Jaune cradling one another in bed, enjoying each other's embrace. Now Cinder wondered if Jaune would desire such a moment himself, if it meant thinking about what he'd lost. Forgiveness was hard enough without the emotions the unconscious mind could well up at any moment. And though nightmares may have been unpredictable, the memories of trauma would never leave, and the perpetrator of that trauma would be resting beside him.

"I believe he can," Cinder managed. "He says he can, and you know – _you_ know better than most- he is a very poor liar. If he believes he can, then I believe he can."

Her wording must have frustrated this incarnation of Pyrrha Nikos. Whatever this facsimile was, it shared her protective instinct of him, and her jealous desire to keep him for herself. She leveled her shortspear and moved to attack.

Cinder instinctively summoned flames from her left hand and extended them outwards, but intentionally muted her attack once she saw this purple Pyrrha go on the defensive, raising her shield to try and deflect as much of the oncoming fire as she could. Almost as soon as Cinder lowered her guard however, Pyrrha pressed the attack, and Cinder stepped aside, her movements hazy and staggered in the blackness and on the immutable floor beneath her.

Cinder wasn't sure what exactly she fought against, or if she could even damage this facsimile. But she had not forgotten the fight against this girl, and the effort she'd had to exert. And in these strange circumstances, in this place where every motion was labored and every action delayed, Cinder found herself on the defensive as this purple Pyrrha repeatedly tried to skewer Cinder with her spear.

"It's not you he loves, it's the part of me within you, the piece you stole!" Pyrrha declared. "The only parts of you people care about are the parts that don't belong! Salem wouldn't want you without your Semblance, and Jaune wouldn't want you without me!"

Cinder found herself pressed down under the weight of Pyrrha's shield against the 'ground' in the darkness, trying to push herself up, but feebly, with only one arm. "You would never have loved him without me. And when I'm gone from your soul, when the last little spark fades, you'll go back to being what you were… cold and _alone_."

It was a fear nestled deep within her. A doubt she could not deny or escape.

Cinder erupted with a fury as she lashed out with her left hand, ripping the shield away with a wave and snapping the spear in two with a clench. Cinder wrenched herself up and hoisted Pyrrha by the throat, pushing her through the darkness until she struck something solid, some invisible wall in the infinite black.

"I am not who I was," Cinder promised. "He made me better."

Pyrrha did not struggle in Cinder's grip. Instead, she smiled. "Yet when pressed into a corner, you lashed out and destroyed everything in front of you. You're still a murderer, under all your lies and pretense. When your back is against the wall, you show your fangs and you kill. So really, when there are stakes, when you're pushed… how much have you really changed?"

Cinder wanted to deny the words. Almost as much as she wanted to burn this Pyrrha alive in her hand. Heat was already rising from her fingertips as she prepared to unleash all her fury and finally be free of this ghost haunting her thoughts.

Then she remembered why this Pyrrha had appeared. And how she'd been summoned.

Cinder released her grip. Pyrrha looked on, surprised by this motion.

"I told him I wasn't sorry I killed you," Cinder quietly muttered. "Or Amber. Or many of the others who stood in my way before. But when I think of the harm I did to him – _only to him_ \- I know that is not the person I want to be."

Cinder closed her hand and let the heat dissipate.

"Maybe you cannot forgive me," Cinder admitted. "But that doesn't mean I shouldn't try to earn it, even if I'll never attain it."

It was anathema to what Cinder had always believed. It was a fruitless and thankless task she should've abandoned, if there was no way to gain from it. And in this place, what did it matter if she destroyed this annoying reminder?

Killing and stealing had made her stronger. But it hadn't made her _better_.

"I'll accept whatever you decide," Cinder said, opening her right hand and letting it fall to her side. "I won't destroy you. I want to be forgiven."

The purple representation of Pyrrha was quiet for several seconds before taking hold of Cinder's collar and pulling her in, glaring in her face.

"And I want you gone from this world."

* * *

Salem pondered the pool beside her, weighing her options. If Cinder died, the powers of the Fall Maiden would reincarnate elsewhere. That was the only outcome she could not allow. Yet it seemed Cinder had stopped fighting against the fragmented soul, and may in fact be destroyed by it, where her soul would fade in the dark and join the other wisps of Aura wandering the Heart of Remnant.

Salem had not even considered the possibility Cinder might allow herself to be consumed. And if Salem intervened to save her subordinate, Cinder might catch on to just how important she was, and would gain undue leverage over her mistress.

The Heart of Remnant consumed most who took its challenge, but Cinder was special. She was chosen by the god of darkness; she was destined for truly incredible things. She was meant to emerge from it with her purpose clear, just as Salem had, after she was chosen to purge this remnant of its unworthy inheritors.

The Grimm still congregating in the forests outside Mistral drew her attention, as some of their number engaged in battle. Salem searched the sky for Mistralian airships, but instead found battle being waged on the ground, and heard the sound of gunshots and the clanging of steel. It wouldn't make sense for an entire kingdom defense to attack the Grimm on their level; had Branwen returned?

No, there was more than a single attacker. The Grimm were attracted to some large concentration of Aura in the group, and the young ones were being destroyed quite rapidly in pursuing it. Salem turned her attention to the other Grimm nearby, instructing through her Seer to move them away, and leave the young ones to their fate.

Three young hunters emerged from the woods, led by a blonde boy in a strange, loosely armored garb. Accompanying him were two others- a girl with red hair and a large hammer, and a tall boy in green. They all seemed quite surprised to see her standing over the pool, murmuring to themselves.

The blonde boy buried whatever concerns he had and stepped forward to address her. "Is this… the Heart of Remnant?"

Salem was stunned that he even summoned the courage to address her. "It is."

"Thanks," the blonde boy offered, before jumping into the pool. His two cohorts, still surprised by the sight of Salem, looked even more astonished upon seeing their friend jump right in. Even Salem was taken aback by the recklessness of the action.

He was just a child. Younger even than-

He was the one Cinder had chosen. He was brave, if nothing else.

But the Heart of Remnant would consume him. He would not have prepared for the day when his sins were made manifest, and he was judged by the weight of his words and deeds. He had not been chosen as Cinder had.

And he was about to die right in front of her.

Salem could scarcely believe her good fortune. Salem was certain she was about to lose Cinder, but now she was about to see her hope and love extinguished and swallowed by the dark. And in her despair she would find the will to survive, and her hatred would be reignited with the pain of loss.

All was falling into place, as it was fated to. Cinder would become her perfect weapon, and the last light within her would disappear.

* * *

Jaune felt himself falling, constantly. He had no idea what to expect when he jumped into the pit, but he was falling so long he had time to think about his course of action.

He hoped Nora and Ren would withdraw now that he'd reached the target. He wondered if Ruby had remained behind and not revealed herself to the baddies or tried to sneak after them, as reckless as she tended to be. Hopefully Qrow would keep her safe. Assuming he didn't have his hands full monitoring Emerald and Mercury.

It was hard to breathe in the formless dark. Jaune often had his train of thought derailed by feeling pressure on all sides and shortness of breath, almost like he was falling through deep water. Gradually, eventually, he found his feet planted on something resembling a floor, and could move –albeit sluggishly- in one direction or another.

There was nothing but black on all sides. He had no idea where to begin, no inkling of where Cinder was.

So he started walking through the dark, searching for any sign of her. He wandered for what seemed several minutes, not sensing he'd made any progress or traveled in any particular direction. Jaune just felt as though he was meandering, wasting time and energy in a place he didn't understand.

Eventually, however, he saw some sign of light… something red in the distance. Jaune rushed over to it, eager to find her, only for the image to become clearer and sharper as he drew near, taking the shape of Nora Valkyrie, entirely red but for black lines to identify her features. She looked up at him, determined yet displeased.

"She's not worth it, Jaune," Nora told him a soft voice. "Even if you want her, even if you believe in her, you know she's too far gone. You know who she is. You know _what_ she is. And every time you try to fix her, you just hurt your friends. You know who your friends are. You know which of your friends she's taken away."

"No one is too far gone," came Ren's voice from Jaune's back, as his other remaining teammate walked up from behind him, cast entirely in blue and black. "What was it your mother said? Strangers are just friends you haven't met. _Anyone_ can become an ally. _Anyone_ can be saved. _Anyone_ can make themselves into a better person if they try. And when they need help to make that change, it doesn't mean they aren't worth saving- it means saving them is only more important."

"She killed Pyrrha!" Nora snapped at Jaune. "You can try and forget that, try and look at her and be caught up in her beauty, but you can't fool yourself forever. If you didn't want to be with her, you'd have left her locked up or let us kill her for the crimes she committed. _That_ is justice. _That_ is the right thing to do."

"Justice must begin with repentance, and she _does_ want to change," Ren suggested. "And if you reject her now, she never will. She'll remain as she is, and be trapped in this overwhelming darkness."

"Good," was Nora's savage reply. "That'll prove to you who she is- and who she always will be."

Jaune didn't allow himself to be distracted. Nora may have felt this way, but blunt as she could be, she'd still have held her tongue for Jaune's sake. Ren may have felt this way, but Jaune never told him that story. These weren't their words assailing him, but his own. And Jaune didn't need to hear the thoughts lingering in his mind, _Cinder_ did.

He continued forward, knowing he had to find her, and deliver his message. When that was done, _then_ he would fight against his guilt and his doubt. Once he was certain he had helped her, and no sooner.

As he progressed through the dark, more red facsimiles appeared. Of Ruby, casting him a disappointed look, when she'd seen him kiss Cinder in the woods. Of Qrow, warning him about the games she was playing. Of Ozpin, frantically instructing him to get help when he went to face Cinder alone in the vault. Of Nora, trying to hold back her tears when she told him how important he was to her…

He couldn't let it stop him. Not yet. Not until he found Cinder and helped her out.

Nothing mattered but that. Not now. Not yet.

* * *

Qrow had anticipated she might try and sneak out. Much as she feigned otherwise, she was too loyal not to try and intervene. She was a sneaky one, and while potentially unpredictable, he'd prepared for this eventuality. When she dashed out of the inn, Qrow moved in her path and caught her on his arm, and her tiny frame bounced right off him.

"Kid, we talked about this," Qrow remarked, trying to put on airs of being disappointed, even if he'd known this to be inevitable.

Ruby glared up at him from the ground. "Let me go, Uncle Qrow. They might need my help."

"I'm sure they could use it," Qrow agreed. "But the one thing we know for certain about Salem's plans is she wants you, and we all agreed we wouldn't let that happen."

"What does it matter what Salem wants?" Ruby demanded. "Jaune-"

"Whatever you think of blondie, at least he can still see the big picture," Qrow interjected. "Even with Cinder on his mind, he still remembered to keep you safe. You think I wanted to let him and his buddies go out there without any backup? You think I don't know what they're getting into?"

Ruby had no response but indignation.

"We have to be strong for them," Qrow told Ruby. "Sometimes being strong doesn't mean rushing into the fight. Sometimes it means doing something much harder than that."

"Like what?" Ruby jumped up and glared at him, locking his gaze. Her silver eyes refused to let his retreat.

Her mother had the same look that day.

"Like letting our friends take the hits while we complete more important missions," Qrow answered. "It's never easy- it's not supposed to be easy. But there's more at stake here than just your boy Jaune or the rest of your team. You lead a team for a while, kid, and you learn you have to make hard choices. And if you don't make those choices, someone else makes them for you, and you lose even more."

Ruby fumed but had no response. Eventually she stopped glaring at him, staring at the floor.

"I dragged him into this," Ruby muttered. "I brought all of them into this."

" _This_ came to your doorstep," Qrow reminded her. "And your friends were all training to fight the same fight as you."

Ruby turned from him, holding the underside of her arms and cradling herself tightly. Qrow reached towards her back but stopped himself, knowing she wasn't in the mood for his help now- not until she'd processed it all.

She was just like her mother.

Qrow instead turned his attention to one of the adjacent rooms where Emerald and Mercury had been staying, tapping on the door. When they didn't answer his summon he opened it, and found only two empty beds and a handful of food containers; presumably whatever they couldn't have taken with them.

Emerald and Mercury were gone as quickly as they'd appeared. One more problem to complicate things…

* * *

Pyrrha drove Cinder into the ground, slamming her into the dark floor again and again. "You want to be forgiven? You don't deserve forgiveness! All you do is corrupt others and then abandon them when you've had your fun! You haven't changed- you're just trying to make yourself feel better so your life doesn't seem as horrible as it truly is!"

"I do want to feel better," Cinder admitted. "And I _tried_ to corrupt Jaune. I _tried_ to abandon him. But no matter how I tried, no matter how I denied it, I _did_ change. Because of him. And because of you."

Pyrrha fumed as she held Cinder's collar. "You killed me!"

Cinder hadn't regretted it when Jaune asked in the cell. She hadn't changed that position when she confessed her doubts and pains when she sat with Jaune in the dilapidated remains of her old home. From the day she'd killed Pyrrha Nikos, Cinder hadn't regretted it- never let the thought keep her up at night, never thought of it anything but a necessary act on her way to her goal. Because Pyrrha had managed to upset her, in her final moments, by defiantly asking a question.

Cinder looked up at Pyrrha and echoed back to the past. "Do you believe in destiny?"

Pyrrha had no answer, but at least she wasn't thrashing Cinder.

"I did," Cinder confessed. "I thought I was blessed by fate, chosen for great things, even if it meant I'd have to kill and destroy to get there. I knew that the times I'd suffered before would be replaced by some formless, shining glory at the end of my journey. I thought no matter what setbacks I faced that was where I'd end up.

"Now, the only thing I want is for him to say…" Cinder didn't finish her thought, instead changing tact. "The last thing I wanted for myself was to die, alone, in darkness. But if I can't change –if I can't be the person he believes I can be- then, that is the destiny I _choose_ , even if it's not the one I was promised."

"You'll die for him?" Pyrrha demanded.

"I'll die for who he thinks I can be," Cinder answered. "I'll let Salem be disappointed, I'll let my power disappear in the dark, I'll let history forget me. Just so I won't be who I was before."

Pyrrha lifted Cinder up, preparing to slam her back down… before her eyes widened and she stepped back. Cinder turned to follow Pyrrha's gaze, as something stepped forward through the darkness: a point of yellow light against the infinite dark.

Cinder rose to her feet as the light drew closer, taking face and form: Jaune, encircled in yellow light, staggered towards her, falling to his knees on the formless ground, looking up at her.

Was it another illusion? Another fragment of a soul within her, from the light of his Aura that had healed her? A memory?

A wish?

"I don't know if you can hear me," Jaune spoke, struggling to hold his head up and look at her. "I don't know what this place is or how much longer I can stay, but I will _not_ stop until I've told you what I need to."

He still held her gaze, even though he was clearly timid about the words leaving his mouth. "I didn't want to say what I felt, because I didn't want to think about what it meant; about what it changed in me. But I couldn't change you without changing myself, and I'm not going to deny it anymore."

"Jaune…" Cinder whispered.

Jaune apparently hadn't heard her, as he pressed on, a little more assertive. "I'm sorry it took me so long to get here, but I've caught up now, I've reached where you are. And if you can hear anything I say, all I want you to hear is this… I love you."

Those three words.

They changed… nothing. Because Cinder had already decided.

Now she had her faith rewarded. And she knew who she would be.

Cinder vanished from the dark, leaving Jaune still exhausted on his knees, unable to see or hear her, looking across the empty blackness…

…towards Pyrrha Nikos, cast in purple and black, looking on with a hand over her mouth, having heard Jaune Arc –the man she loved- confess his love for Cinder Fall, the woman who killed her.

Jaune met her eye, as his words and deeds were laid bare before his judge… and he'd confessed to a crime that he'd freely committed. He'd intended to deliver his message whatever it had cost.

He just never thought Pyrrha would have to hear it.

* * *

The dark surface of the entrance to the Heart of Remnant bubbled up. Salem looked on, eagerly anticipating the trial's result.

Cinder blasted her way out of the dark pool, extending both arms, even her wounded left, levitating on a massive cloud of Aura. Flames erupted from her right hand, and a magnetic field encircled her left.

Nora and Ren searched frantically for Jaune, but saw no sign of him. Nora moved to search the pool, but Ren was quick to hold her back.

Salem paid them no heed –they were inconsequential, and the Grimm horde would deal with them in time- and focused her attention on her disciple. "You have emerged at last, as the person you were meant to be. Tell me, child- who are you?"

"I am Cinder Fall," she answered.

Levitating on her Aura, Cinder waved her arms. The leaves on the trees erupted from their branches and encircled her like a tornado of debris. The harsh winds of the storm clouds above them were drawn to her grip, bending around her into whatever shape she desired. The mists from the waterfall of Mistral encircled her like a spiral staircase.

"I am the Fall Maiden!" she triumphantly proclaimed, her right eye glowing brightly with her Aura.

Salem smiled as all the power at her disciple's beck and call was summoned to the surface, and she saw further despair line the faces of the two children from Beacon.

Cinder clenched her left hand and drew up the discarded metals from the destroyed Mistralian airships, bending them around her, then shattering them to pieces. This act, more than any of the other demonstrations of her power, shrouded the two children with despair that the Grimm horde would soon seize upon.

"I am…" Cinder began, smiling broadly.

Strong. Feared. Powerful.

 _Loved_.

"…a guardian of this world," Cinder continued, turning her attention to Salem, robbing her mistress of her triumphant smile. "One who found light in the darkness, and brought fire to the hearth."

Cinder pointed her right hand, still engulfed in flame, at Salem. "I have seen the shades of my soul, and the darkness of my heart, and found out who I truly am- and today, Salem –now and forever- I am a light in the darkness."

Salem steeled herself. She had never for a moment believed this would occur, that one chosen by the god of darkness would try to defy the destiny she'd once eagerly embraced. It would be a massive setback, one that would cost her years of work and a valuable acolyte.

But Cinder had defied her. And this rebellious subordinate had reached the end of her patience.

Salem raised her hands, and the Seer beside her instructed the horde. The Grimm turned their attention to Cinder, amassing behind their mistress.

"Very well, Fall Maiden," Salem acknowledged. "Then the darkness will give you its answer."


	13. What Embers Remain

**Chapter Thirteen: What Embers Remain**

She saw it all, so clearly. How things began. How they ended.

She made a change in herself, in a way that contradicted the destiny she had foreseen, and with the help of her lover's guidance became a better person. Just as before, she was reborn as new life, and cast aside the past life in favor of the new person she aspired to be. Where once she'd been driven by a simple need for power, now she had found herself motivated to find acceptance, forgiveness, and love. She cast aside all that she had gained for the chance to find redemption and peace.

She stood against the darkness, bringing hope to those in peril, and proving that no one, even those marked by the progenitor of death and destruction, was beyond saving. With her powers she held the line against the overwhelming dark and brought fire to the hearth.

Once her task was done, she would return to the one who'd reignited her hope, who'd shown her love and support and brought her back when everyone else had wished to condemn her and rid the world of her scourge. She saw the moment when they shared hearth and home, when she cradled with her lover and felt the contentment she'd been lacking, and all her doubts disappeared. She envisioned the morning when they'd wake free of old nightmares, thoughts only for each other and moving on from the terrors of his past. She foresaw the day her wounds no longer ached, and she no longer bore a grudge against those who'd wounded her, and the fire that raged within her provided warmth and comfort rather than welled up in anger. She saw herself made whole by standing in the light of her lover's soul, and found peace and contentment in their shared embrace, and both of them bound together in love.

But then she fell.

And that hope and love were naught but ashes of a fire long since extinguished

* * *

All throughout Mistral, onlookers observed the battle from afar, as fire, wind, and metal clashed against the Grimm horde, with brief flashes of light illuminating the dark and misty morning, and the sounds of rending and tearing, of trees falling and ground rupturing filled the air.

The Mistralian soldiers, standing on the kingdom walls or the decks of their airships, looked on as the massive Grimm numbers that had forced their retreat were held at bay by a single adversary. Civilians on all levels of the kingdom, either those able to hide behind high walls of their own or unable to sequester themselves in a safehouse watched as the monsters on their kingdom's borders were repelled by the powers of the elements.

Lionheart and Watts, standing in the headmaster's office of Haven Academy, watched as Salem's superior numbers could not overcome the rebel they'd briefly had in their grip.

Ruby and Qrow, and Ozpin and Oscar watched as their former enemy Cinder Fall battled against the Grimm, using her considerable power for good.

On the battlefield, Ren and Nora found themselves supporting the woman who destroyed the school they'd called home and killed their friend and teammate, adding their bullets and grenades to the fray and reducing the numbers of the Grimm attacking Cinder's flanks. It seemed that –inevitably- the Grimm would be their mutual enemies. And against the scale of the adversaries they faced, any allies would do.

Salem continued to observe, smashing the weight of numbers against Cinder, watching her Grimm destroyed by the dozens with her every strike. Their sacrifices served their purpose; Cinder would expend effort and energy and glean some small measure of hope, believing herself able to overcome the odds… until Salem decided to stop humoring her former disciple and intervene personally.

After all, the more Cinder destroyed, the greater Salem's eventual counterattack would be. The dissipating bodies of the fallen Grimm could not complete their departure; instead the darkness would gather beneath Cinder, and eventually she'd be surrounded by it. Death was little more than an inconvenience to soulless constructs.

It really was unfortunate how things had progressed, but Salem had a plan to mitigate her loss. She could not simply kill Cinder, lest the Fall Maiden's abilities reincarnate elsewhere: potentially anywhere in the world. But if she left Cinder alive, however faintly, she'd steal the powers Cinder had acquired. There would be no shortage of ambitious young women she could lure to her service, and with soulless Grimm as a conduit to host the maiden's power, she would draw the essence from Cinder and pour it into her new disciple.

And then, she would end Cinder's life, before an audience of peers, to remind them the fleeting, illusory nature of hope.

The older ones were needed now. Alongside the Creeps and Beowolves and Ursa, Giant Nevermores and Goliaths began to assail Cinder as well. Now she needed to invest a great deal of energy on destroying a single adversary, all while still trying to fend off a dozen more still approaching her.

And the darkness would continue to gather, with Salem there to weave it, and put it to use, to seize the opportune moment. It wasn't far off now. The Maiden's power was functionally infinite, but Cinder had not had it long enough to regulate it and adjust her body to its potential. Instead she was still relying on her own Semblance, and recklessly utilizing the second Semblance she'd stolen from Pyrrha Nikos. Cinder would still have power to call on, but she'd feel exhaustion, and she'd trick herself into thinking she'd spent it all.

It didn't matter how powerful she'd become. She was a small flame, and her fire would burn out in the face of the smothering dark.

* * *

Jaune managed to make it to his feet, albeit just barely. He'd never felt so exhausted, wandering in the darkness under what felt like constant weight and pressure. He'd been briefly content to have delivered his message to Cinder and she'd departed from this strange place, but almost immediately he felt deflated upon seeing Pyrrha bear witness to his proclamation of love. To Cinder. To her killer.

Jaune met her eye. She was a purple facsimile, much like the red and blue incarnations of Ren and Nora, so he hoped it was simply some representation of an element of his own soul, some manifestation of his suffering and guilt, but almost immediately he recognized the difference.

She had unlocked his Aura, embracing him in the Emerald Forest. From that moment, they were bound together forever. After his initial confusion, Jaune realized she hadn't emerged from his mind. When he'd arrived, she'd been confronting Cinder, not him.

Yet she lingered here in the dark with him. She hadn't left this place with Cinder… had what remained of Pyrrha's soul finally separated here?

"Pyrrha," Jaune began. "I'm so glad I got to see you again."

Pyrrha's expression ran through a gamut of emotions. For a brief moment she tried to return the sentiment, but no words left her mouth. Then her expression turned harsh and she raised her hand to point at Jaune, only to stop herself before she could speak. She occasionally had difficulty vocalizing her thoughts to him, but this was a very different hesitation. It seemed she couldn't decide what to say, rather than deliberately holding back her feelings.

Jaune walked towards her through the oppressive, stifling black. She averted her eyes from him, mumbling something inaudibly to herself as he drew closer, her mind racing.

Then Jaune hugged her tightly. If Pyrrha had difficulty deciding what to say before, now she was completely at a loss for words.

"I'm sorry I could never see it," Jaune told her. "I'm sorry I didn't give you a chance when I should have."

Pyrrha had lived with him for several months but had only rarely held Jaune in embrace. The Emerald Forest, the dance, the heart to heart after Ozpin presented his plan to her… the kiss… before she…

"I'm scared," Pyrrha confessed to him. "I don't know what's going to happen to me."

"Whatever happens, I'll be here with you," Jaune promised. "You won't have to face it alone."

"But what about… what about Cinder?" Pyrrha inquired. "Didn't you come here for her?"

"I did," Jaune confirmed. "But I gave her what she needed to complete her trial. She won't need any more help from me up there with her old boss."

It was encouraging to Pyrrha to see Jaune safely out of harm's way –at least in the most literal sense- but she kept thinking back to exactly _how_ he had helped Cinder. She'd had insight into Cinder's personality through the bond between their souls, and now in such close proximity to Jaune, she was once again enlightened by their bond. Without the usual barriers that kept the soul's aspects concealed within, Jaune's actions were clear and vivid to her.

She saw his doubts and his pain, as he'd struggled to reconcile the guilt he'd felt from disappointing his friends and dishonoring Pyrrha's memory with the real, tangible affection he'd felt for Cinder. Nestled with her head in his shoulder, she didn't have to _see_ his pain –she could never bear to look at it- but now she _felt_ it all too clearly.

And Jaune, in turn, felt Pyrrha's pain flow into him: her fear of disappearing in this empty darkness, and her feelings of betrayal upon witnessing Jaune confess his love for Cinder. Both emotions were very powerful, contorting Pyrrha, denying her the chance to enjoy being in Jaune's arms again.

"I'll tell you all about it," Jaune promised her. "Or… show you, or let you understand it in whatever way I can."

Pyrrha had not been conscious within Cinder's mind; only flaring up at points of particularly strong emotions, sensing the gradual change. She knew that Jaune's actions had instilled a real love in Cinder, and seeing Jaune's memories of events unfold before her brought each moment into focus.

Pyrrha saw the scattered pieces of Jaune's memories, of the time after Beacon fell and waiting through the seasons to wallow in his despair, as he tried to decide purpose for himself, and to provide strength and support to Ren and Nora, who had nowhere to go. She saw Jaune decide to help Ruby in tracking down the people who'd done this harm to Beacon and their friends, both to avenge Pyrrha's loss, and to help his surviving friends in finding purpose in the harsh and bleak new world they found themselves in.

She saw him struggle to sleep, as he recalled her kiss and then her sending him away, while she rushed off to fight a hopeless battle. She watched as Jaune turned his restlessness into an asset and stayed up late to train himself, using the module Pyrrha had left for him on his Scroll, as he forged himself into a better warrior, both in honor of her memory and to be of more use to his friends and never be a burden on the important mission they had undertaken.

Pyrrha watched as Jaune had his ancestral weapon –something he treasured and respected as an heirloom, a symbol of his lineage- rebranded with Pyrrha's own sigil, so that he could carry her with him into battle, carrying on her teachings and her legacy; further binding his life with hers'.

She watched Jaune struggle with his feelings of doubt, pain, and betrayal as he started to fall for Cinder, driven by something more than a base desire, but feelings of real, tangible interest. He'd felt disgusted with himself for harboring such thoughts about Pyrrha's killer, but still pressed ahead in spite of himself, as his desire to offer her forgiveness and lead her to atonement was genuine. Once it became clear Cinder _did_ wish to change for the better, it was easier for him to accept his feelings for her, and to move on from the loss that weighed on him without once allowing himself to forget it.

Then she felt the pain within him as he thought of Ruby and Nora's concern and disappointment, compounded by being unable to answer as Cinder suffered through her own doubts and he couldn't find the words to comfort any of them. She felt his spirits uplift when he followed Cinder to her old home and sat fireside with her, and then the following morning he regained his confidence when Ren offered support and Jaune found the words he needed to bring Nora and Ruby in.

Pyrrha had felt betrayed to hear Jaune confess his love for Cinder. She'd been bound by worldly attachment, constrained by her own hatred for her killer. She'd savagely attacked someone who didn't fight back, and asked for her forgiveness.

No more. She would not allow herself to hate or despair. Not while the man she loved was happy, and holding her, guiding her through this darkness.

And slowly, she felt the darkness slide away… felt herself fall backwards, her perception changing completely. Jaune glanced around too, feeling as though he was sliding down, his feet sinking into the dark floor, as he and Pyrrha disappeared beneath it, still holding onto one another.

Jaune closed his eyes and held Pyrrha tight as they continued to sink…

* * *

The time had at last arrived to intervene personally.

Salem began slowly circling her hands over the patches of dark blood left by the Grimm, allowing the darkness to pool together and form a larger stream. Salem slowly and deliberately weaved the darkness together, tying the threads together, using the residue of multiple Grimm specimens to create a single front of black liquid. Cinder continued to battle the horde, destroying one monster after another, only adding more raw material to help construct Salem's weapon.

The black blood continued to rise, answering to the movements of Salem's hands. Cinder finally took notice of it, as her former mistress thrust her arms forward, and a torrent of dark liquid rushed towards her. Cinder pointed her right hand at it and unloaded a torrent of her own, as fire met darkness.

Cinder found herself on the defensive quickly, as she exerted all her energy to maintaining the stream of flame. Salem seemed to have no difficulty weaving the dark, moving the black blood in cycles against Cinder's fiery barrier, pushing her back with the weight of her onslaught.

The Grimm horde continued to advance. Nora and Ren continued to maintain their fire on the small species, but whenever a giant Nevermore swept in or a Goliath moved into range, Cinder had to break her focus and attack them, and with each distraction Salem pushed her back further.

And Jaune hadn't returned from the Heart of Remnant. He was still somewhere in that dark hole, with his friends left alone against Grimm, their only ally assailed on two fronts and steadily losing ground.

"I told you, Cinder," Salem reminded her former disciple, "You _cannot_ have this life. You _cannot_ go back to what you were. And your love is not a source of strength- it's just a delusion. _That_ is what you traded your power for."

Cinder looked down at the entrance to the Heart of Remnant, only to find herself being pushed further back by the constant, steady current of Salem's attack. Out of the corner of her eye she saw a flock of Griffons get past Nora and Ren's gunfire as they stopped to reload, and she broke concentration to attack them, only to lose even more ground.

She was tiring, and constantly pouring flames from her hand was exacerbating that exhaustion. She wasn't sure how much longer she could maintain her offense, and her former mistress showed no signs of letting up.

"This is the end," Salem told her. "I hope whatever joy he brought you was worth it, because now you must pay for your disobedience."

Cinder wondered what would happen if she failed. At last, doubt entered her mind, as she felt herself relaxing her grip, her arm growing unsteady.

Jaune hadn't returned. Would he? Could he have possibly been prepared for the trial when he'd only known of its existence for a day?

If she failed now, his friends would be surrounded by the Grimm horde and Cinder would be captured or killed. All of this would have been for nothing.

No, she had to keep going. She had to believe Jaune would find his way out of the dark. He had been the light she needed to find her way, and with that same light he would be able to find the exit.

And if she were to fall before Salem, it would be when she could no longer draw breath. The darkness would not claim her again. She would make any victory Salem could claim taste as bitter as defeat.

Cinder reasserted herself and continued to pour fire from her hand, encircling herself in the flames and pushing back, bringing the sun to face off against the night.

* * *

Jaune took in his new surroundings… where before he'd stood in formless black, now he stood against stark white. Pyrrha was no longer colored entirely in purple; she had regained her original form, with her red hair and green eyes. She looked as she had on her last day, in the moment she'd kissed him before sending him to safety.

Pyrrha stepped out from Jaune's embrace to look around her: "What is this place?"

"The Heart of Remnant."

Both turned their attention to the third voice as a woman clad in a brown traveler's cloak stepped towards them. Pyrrha recognized her dark skin and her long brown hair, and slowly, Jaune did as well.

"The Fall Maiden?" Jaune inquired.

"Amber," Pyrrha corrected.

The woman nodded. "This is the transition point- the place where Aura gathers together, and once made whole, transcends the bonds of the world's remnant and returns to the world born before."

Jaune had no idea where to begin with that statement. "So… is it, like… some sort of afterlife?"

"It is a transition point," Amber repeated. "A place for souls to reconstitute themselves before they move on."

Pyrrha met Amber's eye. "Move on to what?"

Amber shook her head. "All things in time, Pyrrha Nikos. Your time is nearly upon you. All that is left is for what embers remain to fade and gather here. The fragment that exists within the new Fall Maiden will rejoin you here and you will be ready to progress."

Pyrrha contemplated her words. "So, you escaped from her?"

"Not entirely," Amber answered. "Until my power reincarnates from her host I will not be made whole. I must wait here until all of my Aura is gone from her."

"That… may be a long time," Jaune gently suggested.

Amber shrugged. "It is time I have, Jaune Arc. I have glimpsed what awaits me within the heart of this remnant, and know when at last I am whole I can find a better place to return to."

Pyrrha glanced between the two. "What about Jaune? How can he return?"

"He need only decide," Amber answered. "Stay or go."

"Stay?" Pyrrha repeated.

"If he wishes, he can remain. His soul is whole and his own- he can progress from this point and transcend the barriers," Amber explained. "Or he can linger here with you, until your time comes."

"Wait, but _how_?" Jaune asked. "Don't I have to go back through that… dark place? That place… uh, above, I think?"

"Above, below, both and neither," Amber answered. "It is a shadow, Jaune Arc, that seems larger than it truly is, because of the light that illuminates it. The darkness you journeyed through was nothing but an illusion. The darkness may _seem_ unending, but its power lies in deceit. It will _never_ swallow the light. It cannot exist without it."

Pyrrha refocused her attention on Amber's words about Jaune. He could stay with her… here, in this place.

Jaune met her eye. He recognized what she was thinking. "Pyrrha… I _did_ promise-"

"No." Pyrrha cut him off.

She wanted nothing more than to stay with him. She wanted him to accompany her on her journey, and to hold her in his embrace, as she transcended from this place and found… whatever other world awaited her now.

But he was alive, and his soul remained complete. Ren and Nora remained alive. Ruby and her teammates remained alive. Cinder remained alive. If he were to disappear now, even if he were to be hers' now and ever after, the world would be less for it.

Pyrrha could not bring herself to be selfish. Even in death, it seemed, she would be selfless. She would place him before herself.

Pyrrha reached over and hugged Jaune again, before whispering in his ear: "Go back."

"Pyrrha-" Jaune began, but she raised her index finger to his lips and quickly silenced him. She didn't want to hear him speak more. She didn't want to be tempted.

"Jaune, when I think of all you did for me, and all the ways you changed me… that's why I needed you to live," Pyrrha explained. "The world has need of your light. There's so much more good you can do."

If he could bring Cinder back from the dark, there was no limit to the good Jaune could do.

"So please," Pyrrha requested. "Be brave, and go back."

Jaune shook his head. "I don't want to leave you."

Pyrrha smiled at him and tapped his shield, where he'd emblazoned her crest. "You never did."

Jaune reached down to take hold of her hand, entwining his fingers with hers'. Pyrrha squeezed his hand and closed her eyes.

Jaune leaned in and pressed his forehead to hers'. They remained there, in that moment, their souls bound together one final time.

But he had to return. Pyrrha had time to wait.

She pushed Jaune upwards, and he ascended up through the formless white, vanishing within its stark emptiness.

Pyrrha looked down at the empty floor. She'd thought that death would mean she could be free of the pain of loss, but it was only more vivid and powerful now that she'd sacrificed for him a second time.

Amber moved over to stand beside her. "You were a noble soul, Pyrrha Nikos. I wish you'd been fated for something more than this."

"Maybe it was fate," Pyrrha acknowledged. "But it was also what I wanted."

She closed her eyes once again as she recalled that moment in the Emerald Forest, as she embraced Jaune for the first time, and stood in the light of his soul.

 _For it is in passing that we achieve immortality. Through this we become a paragon of virtue and glory to rise above all, infinite in distance and unbound by death. I release your soul, and by my shoulder protect thee._

Pyrrha carried her love through the darkness and death and found him one more time. Jaune, carrying Pyrrha's protection on his shield and her spirit in his deeds, embraced her a final time before returning to the remnant above.

That was a fate she could accept.

* * *

Cinder was no longer able to sustain her levitation, and she'd been forced to stand on the solid ground as she tried to fight against Salem's attack. She was nearly out of energy, and stumbled back, falling to one knee. This only encouraged Salem to press forward, encircling Cinder's fiery barrier with more of the black blood.

Salem slowly walked forward, continuing to encircle Cinder's position with more of the overpowering, suffocating blackness. She was so close she didn't need to raise her voice; she barely whispered as she leaned down to speak: "It's time, Cinder. Your destiny has finally arrived."

Cinder looked up at Salem, feeling the aches in her arm and eye as she struggled for breath, and her invincible mistress prepared to deliver the final blow and destroy what remained of her defense.

Until Cinder looked past her and saw Jaune emerge from the entrance to the Heart of Remnant, stepping out amidst the Grimm. He met her eye, and she felt the pain within her wash away. He made it out… he was still alive…

And Cinder had one more thing to fight for.

Cinder used the second wind Jaune had granted her and raised her left hand, summoning the metals she'd scattered around the battlefield and flinging them at Salem. Caught by surprise –for perhaps the first time Cinder had ever seen- Salem refocused her attention to deflect the shot, finally letting up on her attack. Jaune moved closer, rushing to Cinder's side when the opening presented itself.

He said nothing, merely standing beside her and raising his shield. His presence continued to fuel her, her Aura replenishing as she continued to bombard Salem with fire and metal.

Salem finally took notice of Jaune's presence, stunned to see he'd managed to emerge from within the dark gate. His two friends, still fighting the Grimm on Cinder's flanks, found new inspiration and reinvigoration, and fought harder against the horde.

Salem needed to remove this variable before the tide could turn. She commanded the Seer to change tactics, and the Grimm focused their efforts on attacking the two young hunters instead. They acquitted themselves well at first, but were slowly worn down as the numbers continued to pour in. Soon, the boy would have to divide his attention, and abandon his position beside Cinder to save his friends.

The moment came at last when the boy in green was knocked down by a Beringel while his partner was distracted. She tried to fight her way towards him, but was held back by a pair of Ursa in her path. The boy would have to leave Cinder's side and try to save his comrade.

Until the silver-haired brute, Cinder's assassin underling, leapt into the fray and kicked the beast away. His green-haired partner, Cinder's spokeswoman before, emerged from the forest behind him, cutting one of the Ursa down and fighting beside the red-haired girl.

Cinder glanced back to see Mercury and Emerald fighting alongside Ren and Nora, giving them a chance to briefly rest and regroup before rejoining the fight. Only a few days before, those four fought against each other when Cinder sought to divide them from an incapacitated Qrow; now they fought alongside each other against the Grimm. The four continued to keep the horde at bay, leaving Cinder to focus her attention entirely on Salem.

Salem collected the dark essence of the defeated Grimm, adding their black blood to her stream, only for her to sense trepidation from the remaining Grimm. More of their number had fallen than remained, and the older and stronger ones recognized they were fighting a losing battle. They feared Salem's wrath, but their own instincts for self-preservation were asserting themselves, and they were finally questioning whether this small collection of humans was worth the effort.

This couldn't happen now; not when she was so close. Cinder had been moments from her grasp, and now it was Salem being forced back by her former disciple –someone she _knew_ to be weaker than herself- and her band of outcasts and novices managing to not only hold their line against the darkness, but _push it back_.

Cinder recognized it, too. She met her former mistress's eye and asked: "What good is all your power, Salem? Why would you want to be so strong if you have to be all alone?"

The elder Grimm were breaking their ranks and withdrawing from the fight, risking Salem's wrath in an attempt to survive. Salem's dark stream was holding against Cinder's flames, but without new material to rebuild itself, it was slowly collapsing. The darkness was dissipating and drifting away. Her offense turned into defense was crumbling. Behind her, the reduced numbers of Grimm were looking much less dangerous as sunlight began to break through the cloud cover, illuminating more and more of the battlefield.

Salem turned her attention to the Seer organizing the Grimm. Without the numbers necessary to press forward, she had only one course of action left. The messenger waved its tendrils and summoned a Nevermore from the horde to land behind her and serve as her mount.

Salem finally lowered her hands and let the darkness fall away, pooling on the ground and dissipating. The Seer instructed the remaining Grimm to fall back, and all but a few of the newly-forged beasts heeded the order, turning away and marching back east. Salem stepped onto the great winged beast, locking eyes with Cinder and the blue-eyed boy at her side.

It was a terrible humiliation, to cede even such a meager victory to her former pupil. Cinder must've recognized it as well, because she focused her attention on Salem and the Nevermore she stood upon as her mount, rising up into the sky. The clouds broke behind her, as sunlight fell on the forests and the outskirts of Mistral.

Cinder had never seen Salem in sunlight. It seemed very strange that she should have to retreat towards the light to escape. Cinder wanted to pursue her, and destroy the dangerous threat once and for all, but she could barely even stand.

They exchanged no words. They each knew the result. They each knew what it meant.

Salem scoffed and instructed the Nevermore to return to her keep, and she retreated after the shattered remainder of her Grimm force, the darkness having been repelled by the Fall Maiden.

Cinder fell backwards, finally succumbing to exhaustion. Jaune caught her before she could hit the ground, cradling her in his arms as their friends and allies encircled them, helping however they could to return from this vicious battle.

The darkness faded away in wisps of smoke. The entrance to the Heart of Remnant sealed itself, and soon appeared to be no more than a patch of dirt left unmarked by the scars of battle.

* * *

High above the battlements, in the headmaster's office of Haven Academy, Arthur Watts looked on in astonishment as the Grimm withdrew and the clouds obscuring the kingdom began to part. He'd never even considered the _possibility_ of Salem ceding defeat to an adversary, much less expected to see it firsthand.

He'd allied with Salem because he believed her invincible. Now, he'd seen Cinder –a woman he'd viciously mocked for her weakness- repel Salem and force the darkness to turn away.

The soldiers on the borders of the kingdom and patrolling in their ships looked on, awed by the display of power, before dispatching a squad down to collect the small group of heroes who'd saved their kingdom. It didn't matter they'd been instructed to capture and imprison four of them only days earlier- these people had saved all their lives, and the least the soldiers could do was give them a lift back inside the kingdom's walls.

The downtrodden citizens of Mistral, long left to their own devices and floundering on society's very lowest rung, found a rekindling of hope and optimism as they saw the Grimm pushed back. Their meager lives left them little to return to, but the knowledge that the Grimm could be stopped gave them reason to believe they could progress, and their despair was not so overwhelming.

Ruby breathed a sigh of relief as she watched her friends be returned from the fight, victorious against impossible odds. Qrow took a moment to inspect the contents of his flask before joining her in quiet celebration, as Salem was dealt the greatest defeat he'd ever borne witness to.

Ozpin had not believed this possible; at least not without the combined forces of multiple kingdoms working in collaboration. He'd thought a guardian enough to defend a kingdom from the Grimm, but to press back Salem herself? It was a new sense of optimism Oscar had never expected to feel from the man now sharing his soul.

One final witness, wandering through the wilds of Anima and drawn by the presence of so many Grimm, observed the scars left behind and the countless of his children destroyed. And moreover, destroyed by flames he had bequeathed to a young soul that he'd believed would turn her wrath upon the world, and bring further chaos and destruction as he'd wished.

Instead, she'd found a different purpose… a way to use her powers to protect others, even those who had mistreated or abandoned her, and pushed back the dark before it could swallow the weak and feeble souls.

He shook his head. He hated acknowledging his brother's success, but it seemed he'd been correct once again. Even the worst among them could escape his grip, if they wished to.

And the Heart of Remnant, the true nature of the world before, had been briefly exposed. It was not in him to hope, but he tried to envision that the child had not comprehended the depth of what he'd learned. Or this world, this remnant, might change for the benefit of its unworthy inheritors, and his work would be for naught.

He turned away to search for a place to start again. Today, his forces had suffered a setback. Tomorrow, there would always be a new heart succumbing to despair, and ready to accept the dark's invitation.

* * *

Cinder was in and out of consciousness as Jaune carried her back to the inn. She'd never felt such exhaustion; not even when she'd been near death atop Beacon tower.

When she was awake she felt Jaune's heart beating beside her head, as she nestled close to his chest. She could vaguely see Emerald, Mercury, Ren, and Nora walking beside them, and vague, incomplete images of onlookers, as citizens of Mistral watched them walk past.

She looked up at Jaune, and eventually he met her eye, smiling down at her. "Hey, how are you feeling?"

Cinder wanted to ask, but she couldn't manage the words. She was so tired.

Jaune followed her eye around to the various people watching them. "Some of them saw you defend their kingdom," Jaune explained. "They're grateful to you."

Grateful… Cinder had never expected to experience gratitude from any but a select few, handpicked for their usefulness to her. A few days ago, she'd have considered these onlookers beneath her notice and never give them a second thought. Now she was left wondering who among these poor and downtrodden had gone their entire lives without a glimmer of hope and suddenly been given inspiration.

She wondered how many poor little girls living in fear suddenly had reason to believe they could move beyond the lives they knew and make things better for themselves. She wondered how many left abandoned had found new purpose.

Because of her.

Cinder formed half a smile as she closed her eye, counting Jaune's heartbeats and slowly returning to sleep in her lover's arms.

* * *

Salem paced her meeting room, glancing at the empty seats at her table. She wondered which of her subordinates would return to her side now that they had reason to doubt her.

Watts allied with her because he was greedy and opportunistic and she'd given him a chance at advancement. Tyrian was devoted to her, but driven insane by the poisons in his bloodstream, and had already suffered one defeat at her enemy's hands and Salem had dismissed him, to wallow further in his insanity. Hazel had joined her when promised protection for those he cared about, and now that Salem had been bested his eye might turn elsewhere, to an ally more aligned with his moral compass.

Alone with her thoughts, Salem felt the ache of her wounds… aches she had been able to ignore for so very long and dismiss. On certain days she'd been able to forget the pain of the life she'd had before, but now that she had reason to doubt, now that she had a firsthand demonstration of her failure, the pain had returned and she could not simply dismiss it.

Cinder's defection was more than a setback to her plans; it unraveled _years_ of work and placed one of the pieces she'd needed in direct opposition to her. Cinder also had firsthand knowledge of Salem's intent, as well as the location of her keep.

And she did it all for _love_. That hurt worst of all.

Salem had believed in love once, and even let it cloud her thoughts, however briefly, into believing she didn't need to walk the dark path she had chosen. But her journey into the Heart of Remnant had exposed her to the overwhelming power of the darkness and reminded her of the importance of her purpose. She could not allow herself to be distracted by something as trivial and fleeting as love.

It hurt to be alone. Old wounds ached far worse when there were no eyes upon you but your own.

Eyes… the last eye had been the one to provoke this course of action. Salem had accepted his offer, confident Cinder would be like her and reach the same conclusion. Had Branwen somehow known of this result and deceived her? No. An eye was of no use without a mind to relay information to. Someone had given him the task.

Ozpin.

Ozpin was _alive_.

Another failure on her part. But at least she had a clearer picture of the battlefield. She'd have to recover quickly, with the pieces she still had, and focus her attention on finding the relics. The Grimm gathered at Beacon could be recalled; clearly there was nothing to find there if Ozpin had managed to escape from Cinder with his life.

If she hadn't simply lied to Salem before… if she hadn't been several steps ahead.

Salem had to compose herself; to rid herself of these doubts. The Grimm's allegiance to her would always be conditional, and unless they feared her she would lose her already tenuous grip. Salem concentrated on the losses she'd suffered, from Cinder to Ozpin to a life long since discarded, a woman left forgotten by history and erased in the fires of war, and focused on the thing that gave her strength.

Hatred. Her fuel. Not hate directed only at these enemies who'd slighted her, but hate for everyone and everything… all the accursed beings wandering this remnant, marring the tapestry of the world with their pointless and unwelcome existence. She let the thoughts fester, let the power of her hate slowly spread outwards and fill her every thought.

The Grimm sensed it. It resonated in their soulless vessels. They felt the power of it, and were cowed back into submission.

Her wounds still ached. Perhaps they would continue to do so until she destroyed her traitorous disciple and personally slew Ozpin herself.

Salem looked out through the windows of her castle at the pools of black blood on the scarred red ground beneath her. Grimm continued to emerge from the darkness, but notably fewer in number. The unexpected salvation that came to Mistral had lessened the negative emotions that birthed them, and the number of new minions had been reduced.

One more setback… but only a setback. She'd seen the Heart of Remnant, and its infinite darkness. In time, the darkness would swallow everything.

And then, at last, when all her enemies were destroyed, her hatred would be quenched, and at last the pain would end… and she would sit her throne, overlooking the endless black as its ruler, waiting for the remnant to shatter and the world to begin again.

But for now, buried under her certainty, was the niggling doubt that Cinder, one handpicked by the darkness, had found love and turned back. And that thought refused to leave her.

* * *

Cinder rested the entire day, waking late in the night. Jaune was asleep beside her, an arm draped over her. She took a moment to take in her surroundings of the inn, and after adjusting slightly to a more comfortable position, she lay beside her lover and wiled the time away.

He was in a deep sleep; undoubtedly he'd exhausted himself too, given the time he'd spent in the Heart of Remnant. Then he'd lent her his Aura to help repel Salem, and been instrumental in turning the tide.

It was a strange thought: Salem was defeated. At Cinder's hand.

She'd envisioned this day for a long time. When she finally surpassed her mistress and took her place… yet, now that goal seemed strange to her, like some brief flight of fancy she'd had as a child. In truth, she didn't know if she was more powerful than Salem or not, and certainly the battle would never have been won without Jaune, his friends, and Emerald and Mercury fighting alongside her. It was a strange thought, to take pride in what had been accomplished in collaboration, rather than through her individual effort.

Once, she might've taken pride in the immense power she wielded, eager to put it to use and demonstrate it to the masses, so they might fear her and envy her strength. Now she coveted only the pride Jaune had shown in carrying her off the battlefield, and this moment here with him.

For so long, fire had burned right under the surface, eager for every outlet she gave it. Now, it seemed, only a few faint embers were left. What had once been a virulent mix of ambition and hatred had cooled into a much simpler and nobler wish: for the embrace she held, and with it, her fire steadily burnt enough to warm, without leaving scorches and ash in its wake.

Reluctantly, Cinder slid out from under Jaune's arm, climbing out of bed and stretching. She looked down at him, running her hand over his forehead and ruffling his blonde locks.

Pyrrha had envisioned this moment. She'd done the same many times, but never in such an intimate context. Those memories felt very faint now; vague and incomplete, like trying to recollect dreams years after they occurred. Cinder wondered how much longer what remained of Pyrrha within her would linger.

Wandering outside her room to find one of the former Beacon students keeping watch, Cinder hoped that soul would wait a while longer before fading from her completely. Cinder quietly counted down, hesitating only momentarily before walking over.

Ruby Rose, leaning against rafters on the inn's second floor, seemed surprised to see Cinder approach. She had no remark to offer, only watching her quietly; guardedly. Cinder moved to stand beside her, quiet for several long and awkward moments.

The wounds Ruby had inflicted ached, but the pain was intermittent. The hatred dwelling deep within Cinder tried to force its way upwards, but it was a small and feeble voice, and one steadily growing quieter. Perhaps that monstrous, ugly side of her would never vanish completely, but it was smaller than it had ever been, and growing smaller still. Soon, she hoped, it'd be small enough to not just ignore, but completely forget.

Several times Ruby tried to initiate conversation, but never quite got there, just making a few brief, high pitched sounds before abruptly silencing herself. It was astonishing to think the girl who bested Cinder Fall could be so timid.

Cinder remembered their battle, when she refrained from doing the girl harm for Jaune's sake. Now, she focused instead on Pyrrha Nikos, and the moments they'd shared in the Heart of Remnant, and how Cinder had been able to lay down her arms and search for forgiveness. It was a quality she may never have found _without_ Pyrrha's influence.

She'd waited long enough, and let Ruby struggle to comprehend her intent a bit too long. It wasn't like Cinder to hesitate, and she pressed on to speak her piece.

"I'm sorry," Cinder quietly offered. She wasn't quite able to meet Ruby's eye, but based on the thunderstruck silence that met her, this hadn't been at all what the silver-eyed girl had expected to hear.

It was a strange thing, to seek forgiveness from someone who'd maimed her. It was such a difficult task to maintain composure and continue speaking. Hating her was so much easier.

But change was never meant to be easy.

"Let's talk about Pyrrha Nikos," Cinder suggested, eventually summoning the will to meet Ruby's eye. "And about what she taught me."

Ruby was every bit as hesitant as Cinder was, but did eventually return the look and speak up. "Okay."

Cinder and Ruby stood at the rafters talking, slowly but steadily, of their absent friend, of dreams, and the way how everything they'd once perceived could change so radically with a few simple words.

* * *

Nora peered out her window at Cinder and Ruby in conversation, making out –if not their words- their emotions, as the two developed some sort of understanding. She wasn't sure what to make of it all… at this point Cinder pretty much _had_ to be genuine, and making things right with Ruby wasn't something she'd needed to do. At least, not yet.

It was impossible to forget what Cinder had done to Pyrrha, and how one of her best friends had been taken away. But when it counted most, Pyrrha's killer fought against an even greater evil, and now it seemed was making amends with those she'd hurt.

Nora felt guilty for how she'd browbeat Jaune, attacking him over what she'd thought was nothing but selfish desire. Maybe she just hadn't been ready for Jaune to move on, but now it was impossible to deny how well things had worked out. If not for Jaune, Cinder might never have made this change, and Ruby might still have nightmares about the night Beacon fell, and Jaune might still be lonely and reserved.

Nothing was what it had been before, but somehow, someway… things seemed a bit _better_.

Nora tapped Ren, who hadn't yet found sleep, in the side and watched him turn over to face her. Fortunately, he'd long since gotten used to Nora waking him whenever she had an important thought to share.

"You know, I don't hate Jaune's girlfriend," Nora remarked.

Ren smiled and reached over to take her hand in his own, proud of the step she'd taken.

* * *

When morning rolled around, Qrow knocked on one of the room doors. Emerald answered and reluctantly allowed him in while Mercury lazed on his bed with an old issue of X-Ray and Vav.

"I'm not gonna' pretend that things between us are hunky-dory," Qrow told them, "but you did right by blondie and his friends. I'm not sure if anybody in Vale or Atlas will be after the two of you or not, but provided you keep your noses clean, I'm willing to let bygones be bygones."

"How generous," Emerald remarked, rolling her eyes.

"I know, right?" Qrow quipped right back, before turning serious. "I doubt this thing with your old boss is over, and we're all gonna' have to let some things go. And if you two are putting those skills of yours' towards something as noble as saving the world from the Grimm… well, I think we can all manage to live with that."

He stepped out, leaving the thief and assassin to their own devices. Emerald glanced over at Mercury, who put his reading material aside and met her eye.

"Any idea where we go from here?" Emerald asked.

"I've got one stop to make," Mercury replied. "I'm going to tell Cinder the truth."

"About dropping her off here?" Emerald inquired.

Mercury nodded. "You said it yourself, Em- we've got to stick together. The three of us."

"What about blondie and his friends?" Emerald wondered.

Mercury shrugged. "My enemy is who Cinder says is my enemy. Nothing would make me happier than to leave all that stuff we did at Beacon in the past."

He was so simple. Hopefully the others would understand his sentiment and be able to put aside their grudges.

Emerald had some fences to mend… and she thought if Cinder had asked for forgiveness, it certainly wasn't beneath Emerald to try the same.

It was a whole new world. Yesterday had certainly demonstrated that.

* * *

Cinder had spent so much time seeking forgiveness it made a nice change of pace to be able to offer it. She assured Mercury she had no reason to doubt his loyalty, and with a few words and an exchange of honesty, they were once again in alignment. She'd have to find something for him to do to mitigate his killer instincts and vent his aggression, but she envisioned future battles with Salem and her forces would find a role for him. The good guys needed sharp swords just as much as they needed kind words.

Once he'd left to get food, Cinder took note of what the Mistral locals had left outside their inn: provisions, pillows, blankets, and assorted trinkets. All of them offerings to the Maiden who'd saved their kingdom, even from those who barely had anything to spare. She took a moment to sort through them, eventually stopping herself upon finding some fine glassware, raising it in her right hand.

It wasn't likely to have been hers' or her parents' creation; it seemed much newer than that. Still, it seemed her past had reached out to her in this offering from a grateful citizen, and Cinder thought back on a small child, who'd once wished she was strong enough to protect people –even people who'd shunned her- from Grimm and people with ill intent.

Maybe she hadn't been reborn then, when her home was burnt away. Maybe she'd just slept for a long while, waiting to return once she'd learned what she needed to become the better person she'd envisioned.

Maybe this was who she was always meant to be, and she'd just taken a bit longer to find her way.

Jaune finally emerged from their shared room, smiling at her as he stepped out to join her. "Hey."

She still wondered where things would progress; if she and Jaune could maintain this feeling they shared through the months and years ahead, and how long the fire would burn. In the back of her mind, Cinder wondered if such strange twists of fate were _meant_ to last, and if life could be like some fairy tale where redemption took hold and the unpredictable romance between two people who had once been strangers –even enemies- could truly endure forever.

But it was just a thought. Just a quiet outlier among many other thoughts, all united in the single truth: she loved Jaune Arc, and her love for him and his love for her changed Cinder for the better.

He stepped beside her, reaching to her left arm and taking Cinder's hand in his own. Where once her arm had ached from the pain of her loss, now she felt only the warmth of his fingers intertwining with hers'.

Cinder had been practicing her use of the second Semblance, and used it to great effect in her battle with Salem. Now, feeling him take hold of her hand, she couldn't feel the metal of his armor, of his sword and shield, or the metals in the ground far beneath them. It seemed, at long last, the embers of Pyrrha Nikos were fading from her.

But the fire raged on, the love wholly her own.

Qrow walked over, taking a long drink from his flask before he called to them. "Hey, lovebirds, come join us for breakfast- we've gotta' talk about Lionheart and the relic. I've brought in a new guy who can shed some light on things."

Another complication. It seemed the battle against Salem had to continue.

Still, there were these moments, when she could hold her lover and think of the past and find its good, and look to the future and see hope glimmering in the distance.

Cinder squeezed Jaune's hand and the two went to meet this new player Qrow had invited into their unexpected coopt, and maybe share a meal with the man she loved while she was at it.

* * *

Within the Heart of Remnant, Pyrrha Nikos felt the change, as at last the missing fragment of her soul rejoined her, filling her with new memories, of the love she'd wished to have with Jaune Arc. It was a small comfort, to think of what could have been, but it was a much greater relief to know Jaune was alive, happy, and had successfully redeemed a soul, bringing someone lost in the dark to salvation.

And for her, there was the next step. The path to the next world lay open to her, if she'd only take her step.

Pyrrha thought of how Jaune had emblazoned his shield with her sigil, then thought back to the day they met, and embraced in the Emerald Forest.

Not the life she had expected. Not the destiny she had worked towards.

But there were worse things to dwell on in your final moments. She could think of no better legacy to leave behind than the changes she'd made on Jaune Arc… and on Cinder Fall.

* * *

When they dispersed from breakfast, Cinder seemed almost unsurprised by the revelation. If she bore any anger at Ozpin for eluding her killing blow, it didn't rise to the surface. If she resented his taking charge and directing them to appeal to Lionheart and convince him to join their unusual alliance, she didn't let the thought fester or even linger.

Instead she stood beside Jaune, still holding his hand, knowing that no matter how uncertain the future appeared to be, he was in it with her, at her side and in her heart. And Jaune returned her affection, finding comfort and support and eventually regaining the trust and support of his friends.

Mercury, Emerald, Nora, Ren, Ruby, Qrow, and "Oscar" waited for them ahead, while the two waited just a moment longer before they moved forward.

Cinder and Jaune -unlikely though it was for their fates to link- had embraced this turn of events, and they stood together, united by common purpose, and bound together in love, light, and flame.


End file.
